The Hero and the Lucky Penny
by SmackJack25
Summary: A Penniro story. When the paths of a young prodigy and an animal-loving actress cross, a new friendship is formed that will endure the test of time and distance. What new adventures will arise from this young couple? Plot events and themes from both Big Hero 6 and Bolt. Shout outs to DAsKeTcHeRZ for the cover picture.
1. Prologue: A Furry Meeting

**A/N: Hi! Thanks for dropping by to check out my story! This story idea developed after I saw a picture themed after Kimi No Na Wa (Your Name) with Hiro from** _ **Big Hero 6**_ **and Penny from** _ **Bolt**_ **(shoutouts to** **DAsKeTcHeRZ** **for making the picture and inspiring me to make this story). I thought of a good idea to combine the two universes, and that's how this story came to be (that and there aren't a whole lot of BH6 x Bolt crossovers, but I digress). The central driving force of this story is going to be a Hiro x Penny pairing. If you are not a fan of the pairing, I'm sorry for not meeting your expectations but I really don't have anything else to say but keep looking. I'm sure that eventually you'll find something that tickles your fancy (Or who knows? Maybe you'll end up creating your own story). But enough of that, it's time to get to what you all have been waiting for. May I present to you** , _**The Hero and the Lucky Penny**_ **. Enjoy!**

 **(I'm only going to do this part once since I think we all get the idea after, like, two chapters.)**

 **I do not own** _ **Big Hero 6**_ **or** _ **Bolt**_ **. All rights and reserves belong to Disney.**

* * *

 **Prologue: A Furry Meeting**

The time was 6:43 in the afternoon. The last few stragglers had finally left and the Lucky Cat Cafe was preparing to close early. Inside of the kitchen, a brown-haired woman in her mid-thirties was washing dishes and cups left by the customers that day. The kitchen was filled with the smell of freshly baked cookies, used coffee grinds, and sandwich components. The setting sun cast an orange light through the small window above the sink. A nine-year old boy carried in the last of the dishes and cups and set it down next to the sink.

"Thank you, Hiro." Aunt Cass replied to Hiro with a smile as she took the newly received dishes and began cleaning them. "You and Tadashi both are such huge helpers!"

"You're welcome, Aunt Cass." Hiro said while giving a toothy smile. He had a small gap between his top front teeth.

"Alright, Aunt Cass." A 14-year old boy walked into the kitchen holding a dustpan and a broom. "I just finished sweeping the floor. Don't these people know how to eat at the table and not on the floor?"

Aunt Cass laughed. "I can only wonder Tadashi."

"So, why are we closing up early today?" asked Hiro. "Is there something special going on?"

"Actually," Aunt Cass replied while turning her attention back to the dirty dishes in the sink. "We have a very special guest coming today."

"Who is it?" asked a curious Tadashi while putting the cleaning supplies away.

"Her name is Susan Forrester." Aunt Cass said while placing the last dish into the dishwasher and taking of her cat-themed cleaning gloves. "I call her 'Susie.' She was my college classmate when I was in school. She is going to be moving to San Fransokyo soon so I invited her over today to catch up for old times' sake."

"Cool!" said Hiro. "When is she coming?"

The front door chime let out a jingle as the door opened.

"Right about now." Aunt Cass said while flashing a smile and heading out of the kitchen.

Hiro and Tadashi looked at each other briefly and then followed Aunt Cass out of the kitchen.

Standing at the front of the store was a woman with short brown hair, a young girl with short red hair, and an excited-looking small white shepherd puppy.

"Cassie!" the woman suddenly opened her arms towards her former classmate.

"Susie!" Aunt Cass accepted her former classmate's hug.

"It's been way too long. How have you been?"

"I've been doing terrific. And you?" responded Aunt Cass.

"I've been doing wonderfully. I see you've finally opened up your dream cafe."

"Sure have. In fact, we've been doing really well recently." Aunt Cass emphasized the 'we'.

"Oh!" the woman looked over Aunt Cass' shoulder and saw Hiro and Tadashi standing next to her. "Well, hello there, boys!"

"Oh, right!" Aunt Cass realized. "Introductions are in order."

The woman placed her hand on her chest. "My name is Susan Forrester. It is a pleasure to meet you."

"Likewise, Ma'am" Tadashi said while going up and shaking her hand. Tadashi then looked at Hiro and slightly nudged his head towards Mrs. Forrester.

"N-nice to meet you." stammered Hiro.

"Aw, well aren't you sweet. Both of you." Mrs. Forrester gushed. Both Hiro and Tadashi scratched the back of their heads.

"U-um, hello." the red-haired girl behind Mrs. Forrester greeted shyly.

"And this is my daughter, Penny Forrester." introduced Mrs. Forrester while gently coaxing Penny in front of her.

"Hi, my name is-" Hiro started. Then, he saw Penny's face. It was the most amazing face he had ever beheld. Sure, he had seen models and actresses on magazines and TV, but this girl was something out of this world! Her hair seemed to glow in the light of the setting sun, and her brown eyes almost seemed to sparkle. As he looked at Penny, words seemed to get stuck in Hiro's throat. He snapped back into reality when Tadashi cleared his throat.

"Bonehead here is Hiro." Tadashi said while mussing his brother's hair. "And my name is Tadashi."

"Hey!" Hiro complained as he tried to straighten his hair.

Penny giggled at the sight. Hiro flushed a slight pink.

"Why don't you talk with Penny, boys?" suggested Aunt Cass. "Mrs. Forrester and I will talk over on that side."

"Sure thing, Aunt Cass." said Tadashi just as Hiro was about to speak. He then walked over to an empty table and sat down. Hiro followed next to Penny and her white puppy.

"Now then," Aunt Cass said while grabbing two cups of coffee for her and her guest. "Where should we start?"

* * *

"Where are you from, Penny?" asked Tadashi after everyone settled in.

Penny held her puppy in her lap and was stroking its back. "I'm from Silver Lake, Los Angeles. That's where I got Bolt."

"Your puppy is named Bolt?" asked Hiro while looking at Bolt.

Bolt was looking at Hiro with curious eyes. Hiro held out his hand and gently rubbed Bolt's head, which Bolt seemed to greatly enjoy.

"Yep. He's my good boy." Penny said while holding Bolt out to Hiro. Bolt yipped and began to happily lick Hiro's face.

"He's an energetic one, isn't he?" Hiro asked after wiping the dog drool off on his sleeve.

"Do you guys own any pets?" Penny asked.

"Actually," Tadashi replied. "We have a cat."

"Ooh, really?" Penny asked excitedly. "Bolt loves other pets, even cats! Can we meet your cat?"

"Sure." Tadashi then got out of his seat and walked over to the staircase. When he got to the foot of the stairs, he called up in a loud voice, "Mochi!"

There was a slight thud from the ceiling, and then the sound of paws scampering down the stairs could be heard. Before long, a white, black, and orange bobtail cat had sauntered down the stairs and let out a respectful meow.

"?" Bolt then wandered over to the newcomer and sat down next to Mochi. Mochi looked at Bolt and let out a friendly greeting. Bolt replied with a happy yip.

"They seem to be getting along well." observed Tadashi.

"Oh, yeah." Penny said. "Bolt loves meeting new people and pets."

"While they're conversing, why don't you tell me more about yourself?" asked Tadashi.

"Uh-how old are you?" asked a still-shy Hiro.

"I just turned eight!" Penny said happily. "Bolt was actually my birthday present when I was seven!"

"Oh! Uh. Cool." Hiro stammered. "When's your birthday?"

* * *

Mochi and Bolt were having their own conversation apart from their humans.

"Howdy do', my fine fella?" Mochi greeted.

"Hello!" Bolt responded happily. "What's your name?"

"The name's Mochi." the cat replied. "How 'bout you?"

"I'm Bolt!" Bolt replied.

"Knew it." Mochi said while grinning.

"?" Bolt looked confused "Knew what?"

"That yer name's Bolt!" Mochi said. "It's on yer collar tag!"

"Oh!" Bolt looked at his collar. "Of course! It's the name that Penny gave me."

"Yepperro." Mochi said while looking at Penny, who was currently talking to Hiro and Tadashi. "That right there is a special one. Yer lucky to have her as an owner."

"She's really good to me!" Bolt said. "She feeds me, bathes me, and even lets me sleep with her sometimes!"

"Ugh, the bathin' part I could do without." Mochi shivered. "But, yeah. Sounds like she's good to ya."

The two pets watched their owners converse, and then Mochi spoke again.

"Ya know," the cat started. "I have a long history with these here people. Found me in a box outside one day an' took me in. It was real nice of 'em, and they still good to me now. So do me a favor, boyo."

"...Sure?" asked Bolt.

"Treat yer humans with respect." Mochi said. "Love 'em, cherish yer time wit 'em. Then they'll know that yer a true part of them's family, and everbody'll be happy."

"Okay!" Bolt agreed.

At that moment, Mrs. Forrester and Aunt Cass wrapped up their discussion and Aunt Cass took the empty coffee cups into the kitchen.

"Looks like yer goin' soon." said Mochi. "Just remember what I told ya, fella."

"Thanks!" Bolt said. He then ran over to Penny, who picked him up and pet his head.

Mochi nodded and then turned around and climbed back up the stairs.

* * *

"Okay, kids." Mrs. Forrester said. "It's time for us to head on out now."

"Okay." Penny said while setting Bolt on the ground and standing up.

"Wait!" Hiro suddenly said. As soon as he said it, a new flush of pink appeared on his face.

"Hiro?" asked Penny.

Mustering all the courage he could, Hiro spoke. "D-do you have a w-way for me to contact you in the future?"

"U-um, y-yeah." a now equally-embarrassed Penny replied. "I could give you my clickchat address."

"Y-you have a clickchat?" asked Hiro. "In that case, I-I'll give you my address too."

Hiro quickly grabbed two pieces of paper and two pens and gave one of both to Penny. The two kids wrote as quickly as they could while Mrs. Forrester and Tadashi watched the entire spectacle unfold.

"H-here you are!" Hiro gave his paper to Penny.

"Y-you too!" Penny handed her paper to Hiro.

After exchanging papers, the two then blushed and stared at the ground. Bolt stared at Penny not sure of what was going on.

"Alright then, time for us to get moving" Mrs. Forrester broke the awkward tension and put her hand on Penny's shoulder. "See you next time, boys!"

"Have a good night!" Tadashi waved as Mrs. Forrester, Bolt, and Penny leave the cafe.

After the guests left, Tadashi looked at Hiro, who was still staring at the ground. "You alright, Knucklehead?"

"What?!" Hiro jumped. "Oh, uh, y-yeah. I'm fine."

"Hmm." Tadashi said while looking Hiro in the face.

"W-what?"

"Looks to me that you think Penny is more than just a pretty girl." Tadashi smirked.

"W-What?! No!" Hiro denied. "I-I think she's a good friend, that's all!"

"Really." Tadashi looked unconvinced. "Even though you didn't even know her until, like, two hours ago."

"Gah! Come on, bro!" Hiro cried exasperatedly. "Gimme a break!"

"Boys?" Aunt Cass called from the kitchen. "Time to get ready for bed!"

"Okay, Aunt Cass." Hiro and Tadashi replied at the same time.

After washing up and climbing into bed, Tadashi opened up his robotics book and began reading a few chapters while Hiro looked at the paper Penny have given to him.

In her hotel room, Penny had just finished getting ready for bed and was looking at the paper Hiro had written for her. After staring at it for a solid 15 minutes, she finally placed it on her nightstand and got under the covers. Her mother had already fallen asleep on her own bed while softly snoring, and Bolt was sleeping on his cushion on the floor nearby.

"Good night, Bolt." Penny said while turning off the lights and closing her eyes. Just before she fell asleep, a single name floated around in her mind. _Hiro._

* * *

 **Alrighty, that just about wraps things up around here. I hope you guys enjoyed it! If you want to see more to this story, please consider supporting the story by leaving a comment. Until next time, peace!**


	2. Chapter 1: A Growing Friendship Part 1

**A/N: Oh, hello again! Glad to see you're back. I hope that this story is at least somewhat entertaining for you to read so far. By the way, this story is somewhat of an AU that is based off of two movies combined. Last time, we got to see Hiro and Penny's families meet for the first time, and now we are going to see how events pan out after the first meeting. Thanks for tuning in, and now I present to you chapter 1. Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Chapter 1: A Growing Friendship**

Even several years after that fateful meeting that day at the cafe, Hiro and Penny made sure to stay in tight contact with each other when they were apart. Neither of them really knew why, but whenever one saw the other, they were unexplainably happier.

"Hey Hiro!" Penny greeted over the online face call website, Clickchat.

"Hey Penny!" Hiro replied. "How goes it?"

"Awesome!" Penny said. "Bolt says hi, too!"

A small, white shepherd puppy came onto the screen and yipped happily.

Hiro laughed. "Nice to see you too, Bolt."

"Did you hear?" Penny asked.

"Not unless you tell me." Hiro said jokingly.

"We're going to go on a city tour with you in a few days!"

"Really?" asked a now-excited Hiro.

"Yeah!" Penny said. "Ms. Cassie said that you would go with us on a tour around the city!"

"Oh, Aunt Cass said that?" Hiro asked.

"Uh-huh!" Penny said. "I can't wait to see you. Until then, bye!"

Bolt yipped his own farewell.

"See you." Hiro said before ending the video chat. "Wow." he thought to himself. "A tour around the city with Penny."

"Someone looks happy." a voice from the other side of the room said. Tadashi was sitting at his machine components-covered desk engrossed in a robotics textbook. "You get to go on a date with Penny, huh?"

"W-w-what?!" stuttered Hiro. "N-no! It's not a date! It's just a tour around the city!"

"Uh-huh. Whatever you say bro." Tadashi smirked without looking up.

* * *

The tour around the city had been a blast. Hiro, Penny, Bolt, Aunt Cass, and Mrs. Forrester saw more technological marvels and landmarks than they thought even existed in the city. After a whole day of non-stop pictures and exploring, the tourists decided to go back to the cafe and recount their day. By the time they arrived, the setting sun cast an orange light over the city.

"Man, I didn't even know that such craziness existed in the city!" Hiro exclaimed as he opened the door for everyone.

"Maybe that's because you're cooped up in your room all the time doing who-knows-what." Aunt Cass poked Hiro in the cheek before heading into the kitchen to grab some refreshments.

"I had so much fun!" Mrs. Forrester said. "I can't wait to look back at all of the pictures we took!"

"Uh, Hiro." Penny seemed to be a bit quieter since they entered the cafe. "Can I tell you something?"

"Uh, sure?" Hiro said, not sure of what to make of Penny's change in behavior.

Penny looked to make sure no one was looking. Mrs. Forrester was having a long-distance conversation with Aunt Cass, who was still in the kitchen. Bolt had gone over to the stairs and had lay down while looking at Mrs. Forrester. Penny then brought Hiro over to a table and leaned in so Hiro could hear her. "Me and my mom, we're actually planning to move at the end of the summer."

Bolt's ear twitched. He turned to look at Penny and Hiro.

"What?" Hiro asked, not sure he heard correctly. "Why?"

Penny sighed. "I already told you that I want to be a famous actress when I grow up, right? Well, I participated a junior acting camp audition at the beginning of summer, and apparently my performance was so good that they showed it to several big-hit TV companies."

Hiro's eyes widened. He knew that Penny had an incredible talent in acting, but for big-hit TV stations to pick her out of thousands of other actors and actresses was huge.

"And one company in particular is looking for a young female actress for a leading role in a TV series." Penny fiddled her thumbs while looking at the ground. "I was chosen to play it."

"Wow! " Hiro exclaimed. "That's...amazing! But...what does that have to do-" sudden realization cut Hiro off mid-sentence.

"Yeah, the shooting is going to happen in Florida." Penny looked incredibly disheartened. "That means that this is probably going to be the last time that we see each other in person for a while."

"..." Hiro wanted to say something, but just couldn't. His brain was running at a thousand miles an hour trying to process everything he had just heard. _TV Show. Florida. Last time_.

"I know, but it's okay." Penny reassured even though she looked about ready to tear up. "I'm sure that this is going to be a good outlet for me to pursue acting."

"..." Hiro then finally found words to speak with. "I'm happy for you Penny. I know that you're going to be the best actress in the world. But I'm definitely going to miss you."

"Uh-huh." Penny hiccuped. She was fighting back tears, but then Hiro bent over and gave her a big hug. That did it. Penny started crying out loud while Hiro gently shushed her.

"?" Mrs. Forrester looked over to see what was going on and saw Penny and Hiro hugging each other tightly. She then slowly shook her head in realization. She didn't like the idea of moving either, but this was probably the best way for Penny to realize her dream of becoming a famous actress.

Bolt walked over to Hiro and Penny wondering why Penny was crying. Bolt yipped while looking up at his owner.

"Oh, Bolt." Penny said while picking up her furry friend. "Thank you."

"Penny." Hiro said.

"?" Penny looked at Hiro while holding Bolt.

"When you start filming your TV show, I'm going to watch every single episode of it. Just for you." Hiro declared. "Even if I can't support you in person, I'll support you by watching what you love to do."

Penny gasped. Then, she smiled. "Thank you, Hiro. You're the best friend a girl like me could have."

Bolt yipped in Penny's arms.

Penny laughed. "Well, apart from you, that is."

Bolt then licked his owner's face and yipped happily.

Penny then put Bolt down and started getting up from her chair. "Well, I guess I'll see yo-OW!" Penny yelped in pain as she slipped and fell over while trying to stand up.

"Penny!" Mrs. Forrester rushed over to her fallen child. "Are you okay, baby?"

Bolt yelped in alarm at his fallen owner.

"What happened?" Aunt Cass asked while sticking her head out of the kitchen.

"Ow, yeah I think I'm fi-" Penny started. A distinct whirring sound was suddenly heard in the small cafe. Next to the kitchen, a large, inflatable robot suddenly emerged from a small, red, suitcase-like apparatus.

"..." Everyone stared at the robot, not quite sure what to think.

The robot then examined the cafe and began walking towards Penny. Bolt crouched and growled softly in case the robot tried to hurt Penny. As it made its way towards Penny, the robot knocked over tables and chairs in its path. Aunt Cass looked mortified. Finally, the robot stopped just short of the fallen Penny and waved its hand.

"Hello!" greeted the robot. "I am Baymax. Your personal healthcare companion. I was alerted to the need of medical attention when you said, 'Ow.'"

"A robotic nurse." Hiro observed.

"On a scale of one to ten," Baymax projected a diagram on his chest. "How would you rate your pain?"

"Uh...three?" Penny was still looking at Baymax amazed.

"I will scan you now." Baymax performed a quick body scan of Penny. "You do not seem to have suffered any external injuries. However, I am detecting a slight bruise developing on your right elbow. Possibly from a fall or bumping into a hard object. If the pain becomes uncomfortable, I suggest placing a cold object on the area where it hurts."

"Okay, I'll keep that in mind." Penny said while standing back up with her mom helping her.

"You have been a good girl. Have a lollipop." Baymax offered a red sweet to Penny.

"Thank you." Penny said while receiving the candy.

"I cannot deactivate unless you say you are satisfied with your care." Baymax informed.

"Well, then, I guess I'm satisfied with my care."

As soon as Penny said the line, baymax turned around, went back to the suitcase-like apparatus, and deflated while the apparatus closed around him.

"Great!" Aunt Cass fumed. "Now I have to put all these tables and chairs ba-"

"It worked." Tadashi was standing on the stairs. He had an unreadable expression on his face.

"Uh, bro?" Hiro asked. "How long have you been the-."

"IT WORKED!" Everyone jumped at the sudden outburst

Tadashi jumped down and ran over to where Baymax deflated and began a victory dance of sorts "Oh, this is amazing! It works! I knew it! I knew it, I knew it, I knew iiiiit. You work! I can't believe I-I can't belie-okay. Alright." Tadashi stopped celebrating temporarily and kneeled down to put his hand on Baymax. "You're going to help so many people, buddy. SO many." Tadashi then stood back up and saw the stares of the spectators.

Bolt tilted his head slightly wondering where Baymax disappeared.

"..." Hiro was at a loss for words. "What was that all about?"

"That, friends and family, was Baymax. He is a personal healthcare robot" Tadashi proudly announced. "I've been working on him for almost a year now. And now, as you just witnessed, he is confirmed to be fully functional!"

"Wow." Penny marvelled. "You built Baymax? He's such a good doctor!"

"Yep." Tadashi acknowledged. "I programmed him with over 10,000 medical procedures."

"That was amazing young man." Mrs. Forrester praised. "You must really want to improve the world for everybody."

"It's why I do what I do, ma'am." Tadashi said. "Kind of wish bonehead over there would share a bit of my passion."

"Hey!" protested Hiro.

"Now, that's all good." Aunt Cass said. "But now YOU are going to help me put all the tables and chairs back in order after your robot knocked them all over the place!"

"Oh, right." Tadashi said sheepishly. He then began to scoot the tables and chairs back into their original positions.

"Well then." Mrs. Forrester said. "I think it's high time we get back to our hotel room."

Hiro looked at the clock, which read 9:17 PM.

"But before we go," said Mrs. Forrester, "Young man."

"M-me?" asked Hiro.

"Yes, you. Come with me. I need to talk with you. Penny, dear? Why don't you and Bolt wait outside?"

Hiro looked at Penny with worried eyes.

"Don't worry, Hiro." Penny assured. "You'll be fine." She then called Bolt over and the two went out the front door.

* * *

"Come along." Mrs. Forrester then walked into the kitchen. As soon as Hiro walked in and it was confirmed that there was no one else in the room with them, Mrs. Forrester turned on Hiro.

Hiro gulped nervously.

"Oh, lighten up a bit. I'm not gonna hurt you or anything." Mrs. Forrester chuckled.

"Oh, okay." Hiro said with a nervous smile.

"Now, I already know about you, young man. That you lost your parents when you were three, that you've had to live with your Aunt for a while now."

"Y-yes?"

"Well, Penny went through something similar when she was younger." Mrs. Forrester closed her eyes at the memory.

"What?" Hiro asked.

"Penny's father. He died when she was two years old. It was while he was coming back home from work. A drunk man ran onto the street and my husband swerved off of the road to try and avoid him, but then he crashed and died on impact with a tree." Mrs. Forrester rubbed her eyes. "Penny was too young to understand what happened at the time, but I was so scared-afraid of what I would have to tell her eventually."

"That..." Hiro said. "That's awful."

"It is." Mrs. Forrester sniffed. "He was such a great man, too. He was honest, he worked hard to support the family, and he could always make us laugh."

"I'm sorry about your loss." Hiro said.

"Oh, it's fine." Mrs. Forrester replied. "But I do want to ask you a favor."

"What is it?" asked Hiro.

"I want you to be a friend to Penny."

"Huh?" Hiro wondered.

Mrs. Forrester sighed. "Penny doesn't exactly have a lot of friends that she can trust. She used to be bullied a lot because of her incredible talent for acting."

"Just like me." Hiro thought to himself.

"Cassie told me that you went through something similar. It's amazing how derogatory schools have gotten these days. It makes you wonder what these parents are teaching their kids." Mrs. Forrester said. "But it's because that you two are similar that I want to ask for your help."

"Uh?" Hiro seemed a bit confused.

"When we got Bolt for Penny, she was so happy because she finally had someone that she could call a true friend. But I want you to be a true human friend for her. So I want you to support Penny through everything she does so that she won't be alone in this cruel world. Even if it isn't in person." Mrs. Forrester said.

"Of course." Hiro said. "I'd be more than happy to."

"Thank you, son." Mrs. Forrester then hugged Hiro tightly.

"Erk." Hiro wheezed under the crushing pressure.

"I'm sure that you and Penny will see each other in person again someday. Count on it." Promised Mrs. Forrester while releasing Hiro.

"I will." replied Hiro.

That night, after Mrs. Forrester, Penny, and Bolt had left, Hiro got ready for bed and went up to his room. Tadashi was already asleep and giggling like a kid on Christmas morning. Hiro rolled his eyes, but he was happy for his brother finally finishing his project. Hiro then climbed into his own bed and pulled up the covers. Before he fell asleep, Hiro remembered the request made by Penny's mother, "support Penny through all that she does." Hiro then swore to honor that request and fell fast asleep.

* * *

 **Things are starting to get pretty good. FYI, I'm not going to have Penny and Bolt film in Hollywood because that will cause some issues in the story later on down the line. I hope that you all are enjoying the story thus far.** **If you like it, please consider supporting the story by leaving a comment. There will be more chapters soon, so stay tuned. Until next time, peace!**


	3. Chapter 2: A Growing Friendship Part 2

**A/N: Well, howdy, Y'all. Kept you waiting long enough, huh? I hope you all are enjoying the story so far. For those of you who were confused about the ages in the last chapter, Hiro is 13, Penny is 12, and Tadashi is 19. I realized that "several years" wasn't very descriptive, so I hope that this clears a few things up. Other than that, we have ourselves a new chapter. Enjoy!**

 **(BTW, spoiler alert for those of you who haven't watched Big Hero 6. I'm not sure who, but I'm sure that there is somebody who hasn't)**

* * *

 **Chapter 2: A Growing Friendship Part 2**

Tadashi and Hiro walked up to their room and Hiro immediately jumped onto the computer.

"You better make this up to Aunt Cass before she eats everything in the cafe." Tadashi reprimanded his brother, who was currently surfing the web.

"For sure." Hiro said without looking up.

"And I hope you've learned your lesson, bonehead."

"Absolutely." Hiro turned around in his swivel chair.

Tadashi paused to look his brother in the face. "You're going bot fighting aren't you?"

"There's a fight across town." Hiro admitted before standing up. "If I book, I can still make it." He then walked over and grabbed his bot...only to be stopped by Tadashi grabbing him by the hoodie and turning him around.

"When are you going to start doing something with that big brain of yours?" Tadashi asked while poking his brother on the forehead.

"And what?" Hiro asked while pushing his brother's hands away. "Go to college like you and learn stuff I already know?"

"Unbelievable." Tadashi remarked. "Oh, what would mom and dad say?"

"I don't know. T-they're gone. They died when I was three, remember?" Hiro then prepared to walk down the steps.

"Hey." Tadashi threw Hiro a helmet. "If I can't stop you, the least I can do is take you there."

Hiro smiled as Tadashi grabbed his own helmet and turned off the lights.

* * *

Penny and Mrs. Forrester had started packing everything up for the big move. Their small apartment room didn't have much, but everything was precious to them.

"I just finished calling the moving company." Mrs. Forrester said to Penny. "The move is in two weeks, so we need to be ready for when the movers come."

"Alright, mom." Penny replied while rubbing Bolt's stomach. She was packing up the family photo albums into a box.

"Well, I think that it's about time we call it a night. Don't you think so?" Mrs. Forrester said after packing a box full of books.

"Yeah. We should." Penny then stood up and went into her room with Bolt hot on her heels.

Mrs. Forrester noticed that one of the albums were open. She looked at it, and it was filled with pictures of herself, Penny and her father looking happy together.

"Oh, Penny." Mrs. Forrester lamented. "I wish things could have been different than how they are now."

* * *

"Is this gonna take long?" Hiro asked as he trudged behind Tadashi.

"Relax you big baby. We'll be in and out." Tadashi opened a big blue door and walked ini. "Anyway, you've never seen my lab."

"Oh, great!" Hiro said sarcastically. "I get to see your nerd lab."

"Heads up!" a bright yellow bike sped past Hiro.

"Whoa!" Hiro exclaimed as he avoided being run over.

The bike's rider then stopped and put the bike on a frame hanging from the ceiling. The rider then took off one of the wheels of the bike, examined it, and then threw it behind her absentmindedly. The wheel then flew over to the bike and reattached itself.

Hiro then looked around him and saw a lot of tech varying from ping-pong robots to a flying rocket cat.

Hiro then walked over to the bike he saw earlier and gave it a closer look. The wheels were suspended right next the frame. "Whoa. Electromag Suspension?"

"Hey." A gruff voice next to Hiro said. "Who're you?"

"Uh, I-" Hiro started.

"Gogo." Tadashi reappeared. "This is my brother, Hiro."

The figure then took off her helmet to reveal a pretty face with makeup on and purple highlights in her hair. Gogo blew a bubble with the piece of gum she was chewing and then popped it. "Welcome to the nerd lab." She said flatly before walking over to the workbench.

"Uh, yeah." Hiro said nervously. "I've never seen electromag suspension on a bike before!"

"Zero resistance." Gogo said while turning the bike's pedal. "Faster bike. But, not fast enough." she then took off one of the bike's wheels and threw it into a bin with several other identical wheels in it. "Yet."

Hiro then heard a zap come from the next room and walked in. There was a burly guy with dreadlocks wearing goggles next to two glass pillars.

"Oh, whoa, whoa, whoa! Do not move!" The guy said while pointing at the ground. "Behind the line please!"

"Hey Wasabi!" greeted Tadashi. "This is my brother, Hiro."

Wasabi took off his glasses to get a better look. "Hello, Hiro. Prepare to be amazed." Wasabi then grabbed an apple and threw it behind his back. "Catch."

As soon as the apple passed between the two pillars, it immediately burst into several micro-thin apple slices.

"Wow." Hiro said while grabbing an apple slice. Wasabi then turned a lever, and several dozens on green laser appeared between the two pillars. "Laser-induced plasma?"

"Oh yeah." Wasabi said while taking a small tool and placing it onto an extremely organized tool bench, complete with outlines for every single tool. "With a little magnetic confinement for ultra-precision."

"Wow." Hiro said while looking at the tool bench. "How do you find anything in this mess?"

"I have a system." Wasabi said. "There is a place for everything, and everything in its place-"

"Need this!" Gogo grabbed a wrench off of the tool bench and knocked all the tools out of their outlines.

"Wha-You can't do that!" shouted Wasabi while running after Gogo. "This is anarchy! Society has rules!"

"Excuse me!" a blonde girl walked past Hiro and Tadashi while rolling a giant ball of...something. ""Coming through!"

Tadashi and Hiro walked over to see what the newcomer had to offer.

"Tadashi!" the girl greeted happily. "Oh my gosh, you must be Hiro! I've heard so much about you!" She then grabbed Hiro's shoulders and gave him two quick pecks on each cheek. "Perfect timing! Per-fect timing!" The girl then stepped on a floor button, and the ball she was rolling around earlier was lifted up.

"That's a whole lot of tungsten-carbide." Hiro noted.

"Four-hundred-pounds of it!" the girl said excitedly before dragging Hiro over to a chemical table. "Come here! You're gonna love this!" She then began to turn several knobs. "A dash of perchloric acid. A smidge of cobalt. A HINT of hydrogen peroxide." She then grabbed a butane torch. "Superheated to five-hundred kelvin and!" After putting a nozzle on the new mixture's container, she began spraying the ball of tungsten carbide and then pulled a lever. The gas surrounding the ball suddenly stuck to it. "Ta-da! It's pretty great, huh?"

"So...pink?" Hiro observed.

"Here's the best part." The girl said while walking up to the very pink ball. As soon as she put her finger on the ball, it immediately burst into gigantic pink cloud.

"Whoa." Hiro was amazed.

"I know, right?!" The girl was covered in pink dust due to being in such close proximity of the ball. "Chemical-metal embrittlement!"

"Not bad, Honey Lemon." Tadashi commented.

"Honey Lemon? Gogo? Wasabi?" Hiro asked.

"I spill wasabi on my shirt one time people!" Wasabi shouted from across the room. "One. Time!"

"Fred is the one who comes up with all the nicknames." Said Tadashi.

"Uh, who's Fred?" asked Hiro.

"This guy! Right here!" came a voice behind Hiro.

"Ah!" Hiro jumped at the sight of a fish-like creature.

"Uh-uh." the fish-thing said. "Don't be alarmed. This is just a suit, not my actual face and body." A guy wearing a beanie appeared out of the costume's mouth. "Name's Fred. By day, I am school mascot. But by night..." Fred flipped a sign around him impressively. "I am also school mascot."

"So, what's your major?" asked Hiro.

"Nonono, I'm not a student. Though I am a MAJOR science enthusiast." Fred then sat in a lounge chair and pulled up a comic book. "I've been trying to get Honey to develop a formula that can turn me into a fire-breathing lizard at will. But she says that's 'not science.'"

"I-it's really not." Honey Lemon said after cleaning up.

"Yeah. and I guess that shrink ray I asked Wasabi for isn't 'science' either."

"Nope." said Wasabi.

"Alright. What about, 'invisible sandwich?' Imagine you're eating a sandwich, but everyone else just think that you're crazy."

"Hiro." Tadashi motioned to another room.

After Hiro and Tadashi went into the room, Tadashi looked at Hiro. "So what do you think?"

"It's...amazing!" said Hiro. "I never knew that technology could be applied like th-"

"Burning the midnight oil, Mr. Hamada?" An elderly man walked into the room.

"Oh, hey, Professor." Tadashi greeted. "Actually, I was just finishing up."

"You must be Hiro." The professor said. "Bot fighter, right? When my daughter was younger, That's all she wanted to do. May I?"

"Uh, sure." Hiro handed his bot to the aged man.

"Hmm." The professor examined the bot. "Magnetic-bearing servos."

"Pretty sick, huh?" commented Hiro. "Wanna see how I put them together?"

"Hey genius!" Tadashi said through the window. "He invented them."

"You're...Robert Callaghan." Hiro realized. "Like, as in, the Callaghan-Catmull Spline and 'Callaghan's Laws of Robotics?'"

"That's right." Said the professor. "Ever think about applying here? Your age wouldn't be an issue."

"I don't know." Tadashi said after turning off the lights and walking out. "He's pretty serious about his career in bot-fighting."

"Well," Hiro said. "Kind of serious."

"I can see why." Callaghan said. "With your bot, winning must come easy."

"Yeah… I guess." Hiro said.

"Well, If you like things easy, then my program isn't for you." The professor said while pressing a button for the elevator. "We push the boundaries of robotics here. My students go on to shape the future. Nice to meet you Hiro. Good luck with the bot fights."

As the elevator doors closed, Hiro found himself thinking deep thoughts.

Tadashi revved up his scooter. "We gotta hurry if you wanna catch that bot fight."

"I have to go here!" Hiro suddenly declared. "I-if I don't go to this nerd school, I'm going to lose my mind. How do I get in?"

Tadashi smiled.

* * *

Penny and her mother had pretty much packed everything except their clothes and Bolt's supplies. They were due to move in a few days, and the moving people had already taken most of the furniture. The only things left were the beds and two chairs. Penny was currently playing with Bolt, waving his favorite squeaky carrot toy around.

Suddenly, Penny's phone buzzed. "Oh, it's Hiro!"

"Hiro? What did he say?" asked Mrs. Forrester.

"He said, 'I am going to be at the SFIT Showcase tomorrow at 8 PM. If you are not too busy, then I hope you can come by.'" Penny read aloud.

"Tomorrow, huh?" Mrs. Forrester thought for a bit. "Well, I don't see what's wrong with seeing Hiro one last time. Why not?"

"Great!" said Penny. Then she continued to play with Bolt.

"Huh." Mrs. Forrester thought to herself. "That's the happiest she's been the last few days."

* * *

The day of the San Fransokyo Institute of Technology Showcase event had finally arrived. Several dozen inventors had brought in their technology in hopes of receiving that prized admission letter from professor Callaghan. Hiro, Tadashi, and friends had arrived not too long ago and were carting around several bins full of Hiro's invention.

"I wonder where Hiro is." Penny said as she and her mother entered the presentation hall with Bolt. They looked for Hiro at various booths, but to no avail. Until…

"Hey, it's Penny!" A familiar voice from the crowd said.

Penny turned around to see Tadashi standing with a small group of people and Aunt Cass. "Tadashi!" Penny walked over and gave Tadashi a solid handshake. "Where's Hiro?"

"Don't worry. You'll see him soon. Besides, We're glad to see you could make it." Tadashi said with a smile.

"Ohmygosh! You must be Penny! And you must be Bolt!" Honey Lemon said excitedly. "Hiro told us all about you! I'm Honey Lemon!

"I'm Gogo." Gogo greeted nonchalantly

"Wasabi." said Wasabi with a good-natured smile.

"Name's Fred!" Fred said excitedly while extending his hand. "Can I get your autograph?"

"Ah! Um, well." Penny rubbed the back of her head. "I'm not famous ye-"

" _Next presentation: Hiro Hamada._ " A lady on the loudspeaker announced.

"Ooooh. This is it!" Fred said. "Let's go see what our boy's been working on!" He then dashed off towards the presentation area. Wasabi, Honey Lemon, and Gogo followed after him.

"Shall we?" asked Tadashi.

"Let's." Mrs Forrester said. The remaining four then walked over to where their friends were standing.

As soon as everyone gathered around the podium, Hiro appeared with a microphone. After taking a deep breath, he began his presentation. "Hi. My name is Hiro-" Audio feedback screeching made everyone around the podium flinch. "S-sorry. My name is Hiro Hamada, and I-I've been working on something that's...pretty cool. I hope you like it." Hiro then put a band around his head and took out a small metal object. "This is a microbot." The microbot then bent slightly in half. One of the spectators slowly walked away.

Tadashi then stared evenly at his brother. Hiro noticed this and looked at Tadashi. He then noticed that everyone else was there, too. Aunt Cass, Gogo, Wasabi, Fred, Honey Lemon, and even Mrs. Forrester, Bolt, and Penny. _Penny_. Hiro went into a funk for a quick moment, but then looked at what his brother was trying to convey. Tadashi moved his arms in a certain manner. He was saying, _breathe_.

"Hoo." Hiro took a deep breath and found the words to continue. "It doesn't look like much, but when it links up to the rest of its pals..." The bins that Hiro and friends carted in earlier shook from the back of the room and spilled their contents on the ground, moving towards Hiro. The audience noticed the microbots moving at their feet and looked to where they were headed, which was onto the podium. After all the microbots made it to their destination, they formed a block shape with a hexagonal grid pattern. "Things get a little more interesting." Hiro announced as he let go of the microbot in his hand, which joined the rest of its brethren in the giant block.

"Wow." Penny said to herself. As she said this, a large crowd gathered around Hiro as he continued his presentation.

"The microbots are controlled by this neurotransmitter." Hiro then took off the band on his head, and the microbots collapsed into a heap. As soon as he put the neurotransmitter back on, the microbots remade their hexagonal-based block shape.

The crowd marvelled at the way the microbots performed.

"I think what I want them to do," Hiro looked at the block of microbots, which then formed a hand and waved at the crowd. "They do it."

Aunt Cass and Penny gasped in amazement and waved back at Hiro.

"The applications for this tech are limitless." Hiro said before stepping back slightly. "Construction!" the microbots began grabbing various parts and pieces brought in earlier and began to assemble them. "What used to take teams of people working by hand months or years can now be accomplished by one person."

The crowd looked up at Hiro, who was now standing on top of the newly-assembled tower.

"And that's just the beginning. How about..." Hiro prepared to step off of the pillar.

Everyone gasped as Hiro stepped off. Penny involuntarily gasped a bit louder than everyone else.

"Transportation?" Hiro finished as the microbots caught him and began to move Hiro around the crowd. "Microbots can move anything anywhere with ease." Hiro then hung upside down from the lighting batten and gave Tadashi a high-five as he passed by. Hiro then moved over to where another inventor was in a ball-like contraption. "If you can think it, the microbots can do it." Hiro then lifted the contraption, person and all, on top of a nearby platform before heading back to the stage. "The only limit is your imagination." Hiro then stepped off and waved his hand at the microbots, which formed a larger microbot shape. "Microbots!"

The crowd then burst into applause and cheering as Hiro and the giant microbot bowed towards the crowd.

"That's my nephew!" shouted Aunt Cass over the crowd. "My family! I love my family!"

"Hiro!" Penny ran over to Hiro as he climbed down from the stage. Tadashi, Wasabi, Fred, Gogo, and Honey Lemon all followed after her. As soon as Hiro got down from the stage, Penny tackled him with a bear hug. "That was amazing! I loved it!"

"Nailed it!" Tadashi said as he and Hiro did a series of High-fives and fist bumps

"You did it!" Honey Lemon gave Hiro a bear hug of her own.

"Not bad." Gogo said with a small smile on her face.

"Yeah! You just blew my mind, dude!" Fred shouted.

"They loved you!" Honey Lemon praised. "That was amazing!"

"Indeed." a new voice said. The group turned around and saw Professor Callaghan approaching. "That is some amazing tech that you've got there, Mr. Hamada. I'm sure that there will be many more ideas even better that this one in the future."

"Thank you Professor Callaghan." Hiro said. Then, realization hit him. "Wait, you said, 'in the future.' Does that mean-"

The aged professor gave a warm smile. "I look forward to seeing you in class." He then handed Hiro an envelope with the SFIT logo on the seal.

Hiro gasped and accepted the envelope. He then walked out of the presentation hall with his friends and family cheering for him.

"Alright, let's feed those hungry brains." Aunt Cass said happily. "Back to the cafe! Dinner is on me!"

"Yes!" Fred cheered. "Nothing is better than free food!"

"Care to join us, Susie?" Aunt Cass asked.

"We'd love to!" Mrs. Forrester said. "Isn't that right, dear?"

"Yeah!" cheered Penny. Bolt barked in agreement.

"Aunt Cass?" Tadashi said. "We'll catch up, okay?"

"Sure!" Aunt Cass said before going over to Hiro and tadashi and smothering them with a hug. "I'm so proud of you! Proud of both of you!"

"Thanks Aunt Cass." the two brothers said. After she left to join the others, Hiro looked at Penny, and Penny looked back and smiled at Hiro before continuing to walk with the others. Tadashi then motioned for Hiro to follow him.

* * *

The two brothers were standing on a bridge over a small lake looking at the full moon.

"I know what you're going to say." Hiro said before bloating his chest out. "'I should be proud of myself because I'm finally using my gift for something important.'"

"No, no." Tadashi smirked. "I was just going to tell you your fly was down for the whole show."

"Haha." Hiro deadpanned. "Very funny." Hiro then looked down and saw that his fly was, indeed, down. "What?!" Hiro quickly zipped up his pants and punched Tadashi in the arm, which elicited a laugh from him.

"Welcome to nerd school. Nerd" Tadashi congratulated.

"Hey, I-um." Hiro said. "I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for you. So, you know, thanks for not giving up on me."

Tadashi nodded his head and smiled at Hiro.

" _Beep Beep Beep_ " The blaring of an alarm and people screaming suddenly cut the conversation short.

Tadashi suddenly ran back towards the presentation hall with Hiro. When they arrived, they saw that the building was in flames.

"Are you okay!?" Tadashi grabbed a young woman who had just run out of the building.

"Yes." The woman coughed. "But, Professor Callaghan is still in there!"

Tadashi looked at the burning building. Hiro got a very bad feeling in his stomach.

"Tadashi! NO!" Hiro grabbed his brother's arm.

Tadashi looked at Hiro, at the fire, and then back to Hiro. "Callaghan's in there." Tadashi finally said. "Someone has to help." Tadashi then broke free from Hiro's grip and ran into the fire. His hat fell off in the process.

Hiro ran over and grabbed his brother's fallen hat, looked at it, and then looked up at the fire. Just as Hiro was about to run in after his brother, the building exploded in a fiery blast of light and heat. Hiro fell unconscious for a brief moment. When he came to, he could see the fire had grown even more out of control. And his brother was nowhere to be seen.

"Tadashi!" Hiro shouted, tears now running down his face. The sound of sirens blaring could be heard. "TADASHI!"

* * *

It was a quiet evening the next day. The pictures of Tadashi Hamada and Robert Callaghan sat next to an incense holder and several candles. Friends and family gathered around the makeshift shrine in solemn remembrance of two great people who had just left the world.

After the candle lighting, the group moved to a small cemetary, where the body of Tadashi Hamada was lowered into the ground. It began to rain, so people brought up their umbrellas as the funeral service continued.

Hiro stood near Aunt Cass in shock at the current events. His brother was gone. He died while trying to save professor Callaghan. Now, Hiro was the only one left out of his mother, father, and recently-deceased brother. It wasn't fair.

After the funeral service ended and most of the guests said their goodbyes to Tadashi, the only ones left were Hiro, Aunt Cass, Penny, Mrs. Forrester, Gogo, Wasabi, Honey Lemon, and Fred.

The group retired to the Lucky Cat cafe. However, on this particular day, no one felt the lucky vibe the cafe usually gave off.

"Here. Have some tea." Honey Lemon offered Aunt Cass.

"Thank you, sweetie." Aunt Cass sniffed. She then took a sip of tea.

"Are you going to be okay?" asked Wasabi.

"I'll be fine." Aunt Cass assured. "Thank you. But..." her gaze drifted over to Hiro, who was sitting on the stairs with his head low.

"Give him some time." Gogo said. "He just lost the last member of his immediate family. He's unstable right now."

"Mm." Aunt Cass agreed.

Penny then walked over to Hiro. "Hey." she said softly. Bolt was conversing with Mochi, and the two seemed to have the same dreary atmosphere that everyone else had around them.

"Hey." Hiro said without moving. His voice had a new shade of sorrow etched into it.

"Are you going to be okay?" Penny asked while sitting next to him.

"Y-yeah." Hiro said quietly. "Actually, I don't know."

"I'm sorry that this had to happen." Penny said while placing her hand on Hiro's "I wish there were some way I could help you. Tadashi was such a kind and gentle person. All he ever wanted was to help others."

"Yeah." Hiro sniffed. "But now he's gone."

"Don't say that." Penny said. "If you truly believe that Tadashi is gone, then he is truly dead to the world. But if you honor his memory and remember who he was and what he was for, he will live on inside of you."

"Where did that come from?" Hiro asked while turning slightly to Penny.

"Oh, it was a line from one of my auditions. B-but that doesn't make it any less true, right?"

"...Yeah. Sure." Hiro said.

"Hiro." Penny then put her hand on Hiro's face and turned him towards her. "I'm going to be moving in two days. I came here to see you one last time before I left, but now I want you to see me off tomorrow when I leave. Do you think you could do that for me?"

"…" Hiro thought for a bit, and then he stood up and began walking up the stairs. "Yeah. I'll see you there." And then, Hiro disappeared into his room.

Penny let out a sad sigh and then stood up to go where Aunt Cass was standing. Aunt Cass then pulled Penny in for a hug.

"Thank you, sweetheart. He really needed your words."

"Will he be able to see me off when I go?" Penny asked.

"Of course dear." Aunt Cass assured. "Even with the current situation, he wouldn't miss it for the world."

Penny smiled, and the rest of the group talked to Penny about her plans for the future. Mrs. Forrester walked up to the group and placed her arm around Penny's shoulder.

"I think that it's about high time that we head back and get ready for the big move." Mrs. Forrester said. "Cassie, are you going to be okay?"

"Don't worry about me, Susie." Aunt Cass said. "I'll make sure that we're there to see you off."

"Alright then. See you again, everybody." Mrs Forrester said while calling Bolt over to leave.

Everyone bid the Forresters farewell, and they left the cafe.

* * *

It was a hot and bright morning at the Forresters' apartment building. A large moving truck was in front of the apartment complex, and several moving people were loading up the last of the Forresters' furniture. The moving truck and the Forresters were going to head to the nearest airport and catch a flight to Florida. Hiro, Aunt Cass, and friends were all standing outside the complex waiting for the moving family to come out.

"Hello, everybody!" Mrs. Forrester greeted the group while rolling a large suitcase behind her. Penny and Bolt followed closely behind. Penny had a suitcase of her own, and Bolt was on a leash.

"There you are!" Aunt Cass greeted.

While the two friends talked amongst themselves, everyone but Hiro walked over to Penny.

"Hey, friend!" Honey Lemon greeted with a smile. "Today's the big day, huh?"

"Yep." Penny said. "Bolt's just as excited to go as we are."

"Nice." Gogo commented.

"Remember us when you become famous, alright?" Fred said. Gogo elbowed Fred in the ribs.

Penny smiled and then looked over at Hiro, who was standing a distance away and had his hoodie over his head. She put her suitcase upright and walked over to Hiro.

"Hey." She said softly.

"Hey." Hiro's voice sounded worse than before, but it was still audible. "Today's the big move, huh?"

"Yeah. We're really going to miss you." Penny said "But we'll still keep in touch with each other, right?"

"Yeah. Definitely." Hiro said.

"Hiro, do you think you could promise me something?" Penny asked while stooping down to look up at Hiro's face.

"...What?" Hiro asked softly.

"I want you to be strong." Penny said. "The Hiro I remember was a smart and talented kid who wanted to share his genius to better the world. So one day, I want you to put a smile on your face and say that you're happy again. Can you promise that for me? Please?"

"..." Hiro looked at his friend. "...sure. One day."

Penny then threw her arms around Hiro in a rib-crushing hug and caused Hiro's hoodie to fall backwards off of his head. Hiro was startled but the sudden embrace, but then returned it after a slight hesitation. "Thank you." she said quietly. She then let go of Hiro and smiled at him. "Don't forget, you promised to watch my show when it debuts!"

Hiro looked at Penny, and then a microscopic smile made its way onto his face. "Yeah. Count on it."

Penny then reunited with her mom and Bolt, and after the last goodbyes were said, the trio climbed into their car and started after the moving truck. Penny looked behind her one last time, and there was Hiro waving goodbye with a barely noticeable smile on his face. It was small, but it was definitely there.

* * *

 **Now that was certainly a lengthy chapter if I do say so myself. There was a lot of development that happened, so I hope no one got lost in the sauce yet. Other than that, I hope you all enjoyed the chapter! If you liked it, please consider supporting the story by leaving a comment. Thanks for tuning in, and until next time, peace!**


	4. Chapter 3: A Friend Gone Missing

**A/N: Hello, again! Back for more story, are we? I can see that people from all over the world are reading this story, so I thank you for all the support, wherever you might be from. Last chapter, we saw Penny moving out from California to Florida to start her filming career. Hiro and Penny are on opposite sides of the country, but they'll still be important to the overall story. And now, enough with the talk. Let's get this next chapter going! Enjoy!**

* * *

 **Chapter 3: A Friend Gone Missing**

It had been a full year since Penny had moved out to Florida. In her absence, much had transpired in the city of San Fransokyo. Shortly after Penny's departure, Hiro had discovered a masked man was planning on using his microbots for ill-intended purposes, so he had built armors for himself, Baymax, and the rest of his friends while planning to apprehend the thief. The group of friends identified the masked man to be professor Callaghan, who had survived the fire and was planning to murder Alistair Krei for the disappearance of Callaghan's daughter in a failed teleportation experiment.

Hiro and friends managed to stop Callaghan, and Hiro learned to forgive Callaghan even after learning he abandoned Tadashi to die in the fire.

The "masked man incident" had drawn the attention of the world and made headlines everywhere. No casualties were incurred, but the masked man caused billions in collateral damage and left several families in the surrounding area homeless while also injuring a few people.

"I was the one who invented the microbots." Hiro said in an interview. "They were stolen from me and used to cause this disaster. So, I would like to apologize to anyone who was hurt or had property destroyed because of this incident, and I hope that everyone watching this takes a lesson away from it. Technology is ours to create and develop, but can be used by anyone has access to it, whether it be for good intentions or bad ones. We need to be careful what we make, and we also need to make things for the right reason: to make the world a better place."

The media was also interested in the group of individuals who stopped the masked man and labelled them the, _Big Hero 6_. When questioned about the group, Hiro and the others vehemently denied any affiliation with the Big Hero 6.

After all that had transpired, Hiro started to regularly attend the San Fransokyo Institute of Technology and came out of his depression knowing that he would honor his brother's legacy by continuing what Tadashi did for his whole life.

* * *

On one particular day, Hiro was in the garage working on his latest project. Suddenly, he got a notification request for a video call. Hiro opened up the call, and a familiar face appeared.

"Hiro!" Penny sounded excited and concerned at the same time.

"Hey, Penny! Long time no see." Hiro greeted.

"Are you okay?!" Penny demanded.

"Wha-?" Hiro asked.

"That whole 'masked man' incident! I saw it on the news, and it happened right around where you live! Are you hurt at all?" Penny looked desperate for answers.

"Uh, N-no. I'm fine." Hiro assured. He was trying to hide the fact that it was he and his friends that were the ones who took Callaghan head-on. A news company must have caught them on camera, and Hiro really didn't need the media swarming him or his friends.

"Are you really, really sure?"

"Penny, seriously, I'm fine." Hiro said. "How's filming coming along?"

Penny instantly brightened. "It's great! Me and Bolt just finished training and are now ready to start filming! The first episode of our new show should be out later this week."

"That's awesome!" Hiro congratulated. "I'll make sure to tune in to it when it comes out."

"Thanks, Hiro!" Penny greeted. "Stay safe!"

"You too." Hiro said. Penny then smiled and hung up.

Hiro turned back to his project. Blueprints of an internal carbon-fiber skeleton, vinyl outer covering, and program lists covered the screen.

"Don't worry, buddy." Hiro said while touching the intended final product. "I'll make sure that you're rebuilt soon." On the screen was a full 3D rendering of Baymax, who had been lost in the final rescue mission.

* * *

Penny and Bolt ran out onto the roof of a building and took shelter behind a box. Penny then slipped off her backpack and took out a pair of high-tech binoculars while pressing another button for enhanced hearing.

"There he is. Dr. Calico." Penny put her binoculars over Bolt's eyes so he could see the screen showing the evil man. Bolt growled when he had a clear view of the doctor.

"Any luck getting our 'guest' to spill his guts?" A henchman watching the screen asked.

"Oh! His guts will spill, one way or another." Calico said while backing up and revealing a man in a lab coat strapped to a chair.

"Never!" the man snapped. "I'll never talk."

A cat standing near the man hissed while arching its back.

"Daddy." Penny said in a worried tone.

"You are beginning to irk me professor. I am irked, and that will not do." Calico snarled. He then turned back to his henchman. "Has our 'package' arrived? I am sure that it will make our guest more...communicative."

"I'm sending an agent to pick it up." The henchman said while nodding to another henchman.

"Gorgeous!" Calico said with glee. "Have him bring it to me on the first flight." The video call ended, and then henchman went down to the ground level and walked onto the street. After turning his head to look around, he went into an alleyway.

"Bolt let's go." Penny said after putting down the magazine she was using to cover her face.

Bolt, who was humorously reading his own magazine, put his down as well and followed his human.

The two went to the alley entrance that the henchman had just went down and followed him closely while avoiding detection.

The henchman then turned a corner and disappeared. Penny and Bolt followed after him...to find a dead end. Penny and Bolt looked around to see where the thug had gone, and then a door came up behind them trapping them in the alley. The rev of a car engine was heard, and at the opposite end of the alley, a black car appeared.

"We only need the girl." Calico informed the henchman through a dashboard computer screen. The henchman then stepped on the gas and charged towards Bolt and Penny.

Penny looked worried, but Bolt just growled and started running towards the oncoming car. As soon as Bolt's head collided with the car, the car flew into the air and landed on its roof.

Penny walked over to the car and tapped on the driver's window.

"What?" Snarled the driver.

"Where's Calico?" Penny demanded.

"I'm not telling you anything." The Henchman snapped.

A few minutes later, Bolt dangled the car off of a bridge with his teeth.

"Bolivia! Bolivia!" The driver practically screeched. "Calico's in Bolivia near Lake Rogaguado!"

"Lake Rogaguado." Penny said flatly. "I should've known." She then looked up to see several attack helicopters coming their way. "Come one Bolt, let's go!"

Bolt dropped the car onto the bridge and run over to his human.

Penny then took out a foldable high-speed scooter and put on her helmet. After starting up the scooter's engine, she kicked off with Both following closely.

Penny and Bolt evaded the helicopters when they came close, and went down a thin alleyway to try and lose them.

"Bolivia!" A small computer screen came up over Penny's eye. She then saw a readout for a flight to Bolivia at the nearby airport. "There's a flight leaving in ten minutes!" Penny then saw the three helicopters directly above her head.

Several of Calico's lackeys dropped down on motorcycles and began chasing Penny and Bolt. One henchman activated his electrical taser glove for Penny to see.

"Bolt!" Penny called. "Zoom-zoom!" Penny then pushed a button, which launched a small stick attached by a string to the front of her scooter. Bolt grabbed the stick in his mouth and started running at breakneck speeds while towing Penny behind him. Penny and Bolt weaved through traffic at high speed, but eventually, Calico's lackeys caught up with the duo.

"Gah!" One of the henchmen tried to swipe at Penny with his electrified glove, but Penny dodged the attack and Bolt guided her into an abandoned factory. Bolt then crashed into the opposite wall and onto the street. The two lackeys that were following Penny into the factory slipped and fell off of their bikes.

Bolt and Penny smiled at each other, but then two more lackeys dropped down from an overpass. One lackey showed Bolt a disk-shaped object. "1:00" appeared on the disk, and then the lackey threw it so it stuck to the back of a fuel tanker right next to a school bus filled with children.

"Bolt! Fetch!" Penny commanded. Bolt released the stick in his mouth and started pursuing the fuel tanker with the bomb on it.

One of Calico's lackeys cackled with laughter as he prepared to bring his electrified glove on Penny. At the last second, Penny dodged and the lackey accidently shocked his co-lackey, who fell off of his bike.

Bolt finally caught up to the truck with the bomb on it and grabbed it with his teeth.

"Puppy!" One of the students said as Bolt ran past the school bus. Bolt looked behind him and saw two helicopters hot on his tail. He then saw a metro passing by and jumped on.

One helicopter prepared to fire its gatling gun at Bolt, but then Bolt turned around and fired his laser eyes at the helicopter, which made it crash land a few moments after.

Another helicopter continued the pursuit and dropped a motorcycle, which then fired a heat-seeking missile at Bolt. Bolt jumped off the top of the metro and the missile followed. In the distance, Bolt could see Penny still being harassed by a lackey.

"!" A helicopter appeared directly in front of Bolt, but Bolt jumped right over the helicopter and the missile that was chasing Bolt flew right into the helicopter, destroying it.

The Lackey chasing Penny was just about to grab her, but then Bolt appeared from over his shoulder and jumped down. The lackey felt something on his head and grabbed it. He turned it over and saw, "0:04" on the timer. The lackey then jumped and threw the disc upwards, where it stuck to the last helicopter and detonated. He slapped his head in disbelief, but forgot that his glove was still electrified and fell off of his bike after a nasty shock.

"Good boy!" Penny said as Bolt caught up to her. "Airport!" the duo pulled off on an exit, but saw a problem. "Uh-oh." Penny came to a stop as an entire army of battle trucks, motorcycles, helicopters and more headed their way. "Bolt, speak." Penny commanded.

Bolt then went slightly in front of Penny and crouched. Penny covered her ears, and Bolt let out a thunderous superbark that created a supersonic shockwave and blew away everything headed their way. After the dust cleared, all foes had been immobilized.

"Okay, okay. Good job, buddy. Mission accomplished." Penny said while taking out a camera. She took a picture of herself and Bolt, and the picture came out of a small slit at the bottom of the camera. "That's a keeper."

Bolt growled at the fallen lackeys everywhere while Penny scooped him up in her arms.

"Don't worry, Bolt. You saved the day again."

A bell rang, the background was lifted up, and the props began to be cleared. A large bustle was going on on the sound stage, but the bigger bustle happened in the central filming room.

"Let me ask you, Mindy from the network, what do you see here?" The director angrily demanded from a woman in a business suit.

"Uh," Mindy looked at the screen, which had a frame of Bolt and Penny on it. A boom mike could be seen on the far right side of the screen. "The dog." Mindy finally replied.

"'The dog' she says." The director said in a mocking tone. "Oh, Mindy. Poor, poor, Mindy."

"Am I missing something?" asked Mindy.

"You're missing EVERYTHING, Mindy." The director said while scooting over to Mindy in a wheeled swivel chair. "You see a dog. _I_ see an animal who believes with every fiber of his being, every FIBER, that the girl he loves is in mortal danger." He waved dramatically at the screen. "I see a depth of emotion on the face of that canine the likes of which has never been captured on screen before! Never, Mindy from the network!"

"Hmm." Mindy looked unimpressed.

"We jump through hoops to make sure that Bolt believes everything is real." The director continued. "It's why we don't miss marks. It's why we don't reshoot, and it's why we most certainly do not let the dog see boom mikes! Because, Mindy from the network, if the dog believes it, the audience believes it."

"Wow. Okay." Mindy still looked unimpressed. "You want reality? Here you go, chief. The show's too predictable. The girl's in danger, the dog saves her from the creepy English guy, we get it. There's always a happy ending. And our focus groups tell us 18-to-35-year-olds are unhappy." Mindy's voice began to gain volume. "They're not happy with happy. So maybe you should, I don't know, spend a little less time worrying about the dog's method of acting and more time figuring out how to stop 20-year-olds in Topeka from changing the channel. Because if you lose so much as half a rating point, so help me, I will fire everyone in this room, starting with you. How's that for real?" She then slammed the door behind her and left everyone mute.

* * *

"There she is! My little superstar!" Penny's agent caught her coming out of Bolt's trailer. "Let's go get that Teen Vogue cover shoot!"

"Mom, I want to take Bolt home this weekend." Penny said.

"Well, I-" Mrs. Forrester started.

"That'd be nice." Agent interrupted. "That'd be great!"

"So I can bring Bolt home?" Penny asked excitedly.

"As your friend, I say, 'yes, absolutely,' but as your agent, I have to remind you that this is Bolt's world. He has to stay right here. Okay, let's go."

"But he never gets to be a real dog anymore!" Penny protested. "Ever since we started filming, he's been acting different. It would only be for the weekend and I just want-"

"Well, you know what?" Agent interrupted. "That's a fair question. Let's do this, let's put a pin in it. Boop! Pin in. Now, let's let that hang there a bit, and then we'll address that when we've thought things through. Okay? Good enough for everybody? Smiles all around? Let's get out of here. Come on."

Penny looked back at Bolt's trailer one last time, and then she was swarmed by her crew and guided outside.

Inside of his trailer, Bolt was lying down on the ground. "I'll never let them get you, Penny." Bolt promised.

* * *

Deep in a jungle near a lake, Bolt and Penny crouched near a bush as a truck went by. A door then opened to a secret-facility.

"You ready, Bolt?" Penny asked.

"Widen up, camera three." A director said from the central filming room. "Ready four. Go four! And driver."

A camera on the floor watched as Penny and Bolt passed by while hanging from under the truck.

A set design for a secret lair had several lackeys armed with guns standing guard. One of the guards bent down to allow a set person to clean his visor. "Thanks, Larry." The guard said.

"Alright, Scooter," the director said through an earpiece. "Find the grate. Ready on the rubber bars." Another set member put his hands on two levers.

Bolt crawled through the air vent and placed his paws on the bars. As he pulled them outwards, the set member pulled the levers and the bars bent outwards giving the impression that Bolt pulled the bars apart.

"And, track with them..." The director said to the cameraman.

"The Calico supercomputer." Penny said while looking around the corner. "If we can access it, I'll finally know where they're keeping my father." Penny motioned for Bolt to go down the other hallway, and then pulled a penny out of her pocket. She rolled the penny on the ground, and a guard walked over to investigate it.

"Oof!" As the guard was distracted, Bolt tackled the two other guards. Both guards were pulled out of sight using cables and landed on mattresses.

"The weapon's hot." A set member reported.

Another set member walked over to a slit in the wall with a remote control. "Heat vision time." He whispered to himself.

The guard examining the penny suddenly whipped around and aimed his gun at Bolt.

"Bolt, stare!" Penny commanded. Bolt stared intensely at the guard's gun.

"Now!" The director commanded.

The set member pulled a lever, and the gun vaporized in the guard's hands. "Ahh!" The guard pretended to be shocked, and then Bolt launch himself at the guard.

A lackey was looking through some data files on the Calico supercomputer. Bolt slowly came up from behind and delivered a swift chop to the lackey's neck. The lackey let out an exaggerated gasp and collapsed onto the floor.

"Nice move." Penny said before sitting in the chair and starting to type in some key words. "Come on, come on!" Suddenly, the computer and the lights shut down. The ceiling began to open.

"Such devotion." Calico crowed from up top. "It brings tears to my eyes!"

"Calico." Penny said.

"Your father's discoveries could be of great use to our organization. I'm sure he'll be more accommodating now that I've got his lucky Penny!"

The chair Penny was in suddenly lurched backwards, and a metal shell appeared from the ground.

"Bolt!" Penny cried. It was the last thing she said before the top half of the shell crashed down from the helicopter overhead and lifted Penny away.

"World domination is within my grasp!" Calico laughed maniacally as he flew away on top of the shell containing Penny.

Bolt growled and prepared to pursue, but then a man in a visor and padded suit grabbed Bolt and tossed him into a cage before leaving the set cage in hand.

"How did your focus groups feel about cliffhangers?" The director said snidely to Mindy, who rolled her eyes. "You ask for unhappy 18-to-35-year-olds, I give you unhappy 18-to-35-year-olds."

"Bolt!" Penny's voice rang. "I'm okay!"

"Whoa! Whoa! Whoa!" The director panicked. "Guards, stop her!"

The two guards outside the computer room stopped Penny from reaching Bolt.

"Hey, hey, hey, hey. Hold on." The guard said.

Bolt barked angrily form his cage, wanting to be let out.

"Listen to him!" Penny protested. "He needs to know I'm okay!"

"Nope." Agent said. "You're not okay. You've been kidnapped by the fiendish Dr. Calico, at least that's what the dog needs to think, but just imagine, close your eyes and imagine how excited he'll be when he saves you tomorrow. Okay?"

"But he's gonna be freaking out all night. Please, just let me-"

"Wait a second, what's that behind your ear?" Agent interrupted. "Is that a...yes, it is. It's a pin. Let's do this. Let's take the pin and put it in this conversation. Boop! And we will not take it down, no, ma'am, until this matter is resolved."

* * *

Bolt, meanwhile, had been taken back to his trailer by the padded man. He opened the door to the cage, and Bolt jumped out and angrily growled at him.

"Hey Bolt-" A skinny black cat and a furry white cat had opened the top of Bolt's trailer, and Bolt looked up and saw the way out. He jumped on top of the padded man's head and jumped out of the trailer, scaring the two cats away. Bolt then ran to where they had just been filming.

"Bolt! Come back!" The padded man yelled.

Bolt ran to the computer room, but it was dark and empty. "I'm too late." Bolt muttered.

"Bolt, help!" Penny's voice echoed.

"I'm coming Penny!" Bolt ran towards the voice.

"Bolt, help!" Penny's voice came again.

Bolt ran into a hallway and ran towards Penny's voice. "Hold on, Penny! Hold on!"

Unbeknownst to Bolt, the sound of Penny's cries for help was actually a sound editor going over old footage on a computer.

Bolt ran past another room, But something outside the window caught his attention. It was a container that looked exactly like the one Penny was taken away in. "Penny!" Bolt ran towards the container...and crashed right into a window. Bolt then fell backwards and into a box filled with styrofoam packing peanuts. Another man wearing headphones came by and taped closed the box Bolt was in without knowing it. He then took it and another box and loaded them onto a truck.

"Bolt!" a woman passed by with the padded man walking awkwardly behind her. "Here Bolt!"

The box was loaded onto the truck and the door closed.

* * *

"What do you mean he ran off!?" Penny asked.

"I put him back into the trailer," the padded man explained. "But then he escaped out the top and ran off, and we can't find him anywhere!"

Penny looked about ready to strangle something, but her agent beat her to it.

"What are you saying?!" Agent screeched while grabbing the padded man by the neck. "Without Bolt, we can't continue filming! We'll never be able to resolve the cliffhanger!"

Penny then fully realized the situation. Bolt believed that Penny had been kidnapped by Calico, and he had broken out to try and find her. If only she had been able to show Bolt that she was okay!

"Why didn't you let me see him!?" Penny yelled. "If he had just known that I was okay, none of this would have happened!"

"Now, Penny." Agent tried to calm her down. "You know we can't do that because if Bolt knew you were okay, he wouldn't try as hard to rescue yo-"

"I DON'T CARE!" Penny shouted. At that, everyone paused and looked at her. Penny was usually such a sweet and quiet girl. Seeing her outburst like this was unthought of. "I just wanted to let Bolt be a normal dog. Can't you even let me do that for one day?!"

"Penny, let's do this." Agent said with an even tone. "Let's put a pin in th-"

"NO." Penny said firmly. "I've had enough of your pins! I just want my dog back! I want my friend back!" She then ran towards Bolt's trailer while sobbing loudly. She went in and slammed the door shut, leaving everyone in close proximity mute.

* * *

A worker unloaded a stack of boxes from the most recent delivery. He placed the boxes in a corner of the storage area and was about to walk off when the box on the bottom jumped.

"Huh?" The worker took out a box-cutting knife and cut the tape covering the box. As soon as the box was opened all the way, Bolt jumped out of the Box. "Whoa!"

Bolt didn't linger to look around for long. He jumped out an open window and ran towards the street. "Okay, Bolty. Okay. Stay cool. You're cool, Bolty."

Bolt then ran down another alleyway and saw a man with a very familiar hairdo.

"The green-eyed man!" Bolt said. A fence separated Bolt from the man, so Bolt got a running start and charged at the fence expecting it to break. Bolt was very surprised when he bounced off of the fence and doing virtually no damage to it whatsoever.

"What?" Bolt then saw a small hole on the side of the fence and went through that to get to the man on the other side. He snuck up behind. Bolt readied his paw and struck the man, but it did nothing besides get the man's attention. Bolt looked and saw that the man was actually not the green-eyed man - just a normal civilian. Bolt then ran off down the street

"Oh!" "Whoa!" "Hey!" Bolt weaved around the people on the sidewalk. Then, he noticed a large hole in the sidewalk under construction. Bolt ran faster and jumped, expecting to clear the hole easily, but fell down before he was even halfway across. Bolt climbed out of the hole hurt and confused, but then he saw a familiar-looking container on the back of a truck.

"Penny! Target acquired."

Bolt began chasing the truck, and eventually got right in front of it. The truck driver swerved to avoid running into Bolt, and the container on its back fell over after the truck stopped.

"Penny!" Bolt looked inside the container. Little did Bolt know that the container was just a port-a-potty. "Penny? They moved her!"

Bolt continued running, but was suddenly picked up by a lady holding several dog leashes. "Hey there. Are you lost, sweetie?" She then put a leash on Bolt's collar.

Bolt suddenly jumped down and began running again, now with a leash on his collar. He ran into a pile of newspapers, got one stuck on his face, and couldn't see where he was running. When he finally shook off the newspaper, Bolt suddenly ran into a fence and got his head stuck between two bars in a fence.

"Ah-hah-hah." Bolt realized how long he had been running for and caught his breath. He then looked up at some super-tall buildings. Why did this feel so familiar? Bolt then realized that he was still stuck in the fence and tried to bend the bars to get out.

"Why. Can't. I. Bend these stupid bars!?" Bolt desperately tried his hardest, but to no avail.

"Oh, buddy. You got your head stuck pretty good, huh, guy?" A new voice said.

"?" Bolt looked down and saw a pigeon looking up at him.

"Hey, guys, come here." The pigeon said. "Check this out. He's got his melon stuck."

Two more pigeons landed next to the first.

"Yup." One pigeon said. "Dat is one stuck melon."

Bolt continued his struggle to try and get out.

"Hey, hey, buddy. Take it easy. Slow down." The first pigeon said.

"I will not take it easy, pheasant." Bolt grunted as he continued to struggle. "I am missing my person."

"Hey, buddy, relax. Like this." The pigeon demonstrated with his head. "Turn and pull. Turn and pull. Forget about it. You'll be out, no time."

Bolt looked skeptical, but with no better alternative, he followed the pigeon's advice. Indeed, in no time at all, Bolt's head popped out and he fell backwards. He then noticed something on his paw. It was pink and light-weight.

"What are these things?" Bolt asked while shaking it off. "This stuff weakens me!"

The first pigeon walked over and pecked at the pink object. "Oh! Those are styrofoam packing peanuts."

"Styrofoam?" Bolt asked. "This has the green-eyed man written all over it. Have you seen the man with the green eye?"

"You know, I gotta say something," the first pigeon said. "if I could say something here. You look familiar. Joey, look at this guy's mug."

"Yeah. You know, I could've sworn I've seen this guy before." Joey said.

"I gotta tell you, I never forget a face." said the first pigeon.

"He never does." Joey agreed.

"Listen, listen!" Bolt was starting to get frustrated. "The man with the green eye, tell me what you know, birds."

"I know this dog." The first pigeon said, ignoring Bolt's question. "I gotta remember. It's gonna kill me. Hold on."

Right at that moment, a bus advertising Bolt's show pulled up right next to the group.

"No, I don't know. I thought I knew." The pigeon finally said.

Bolt groaned. "You pigeons are useless. I need someone on the inside, someone close to the Green-Eyed Man. A cat."

"Ooh. A cat?" asked the first pigeon.

"Yeah, a cat. And when I find him, when I find him, I'm gonna make that cat wish he were never born." Bolt said confidently.

The three pigeons all looked at each other and then got a devious glint in their eyes.

"I think we know just the cat." The first pigeon finally said.

* * *

Penny was curled up into a ball and sobbing while her mother placed an arm around Penny and gently shushing her.

"W-w-why i-is he g-g-gone?" Penny stuttered and sniffed.

"Oh, baby." Mrs. Forrester pulled her daughter in close for a hug. "I wish I knew so that I could bring him back for you."

'What do I do?' Mrs. Forrester thought to herself. Penny was in a bad spot. She had just lost her best friend and needed emotional support. She herself could only provide so much support and love, but this situation looked like it was going to require outside help. But who?

Penny shifted in her mother's embrace and Mrs. Forrester looked the picture wall. The picture wall was mostly covered with pictures of Penny and Bolt, but there were a few that had other people in them as well. Her eyes scanned the wall until her gaze fell on a certain picture. In the picture was Penny, Bolt, and a young man with messy black hair. The gears in her head slowly began to turn.

"Penny? Honey?" Mrs. Forrester gently shook her daughter to get her attention.

"...?" Penny looked up at her mother with tear-filled eyes.

"Why don't you give Hiro a call? I'm sure that he would love to speak to you right now since you haven't contacted each other for a while."

"No, mom." Penny said while wiping her tears on her sleeve. "I already t-talked to him recently. Besides, i-if he sees me like this, *hic* who knows what he'll think of me."

"Now, Penny." Mrs. Forrester said with a gentle but firm tone. "Hiro is not that kind of person. He's the responsible kind of boy who supports his friends, no matter what. Now, go on. I'm sure that it'll do you some good."

"..." Penny didn't move for a few seconds, and then nodded her head. She wiped her tears off once more and opened up her laptop with her mother sitting next to her.

* * *

Hiro had just come back from school. It was a great day. He had finally finished rebuilding Baymax and had brought him home.

"You're gonna help so many people, buddy." Hiro said, recalling what Tadashi once said. "So many."

Suddenly, a notification jingle played from Hiro's computer. Hiro turned on the monitor and saw a request for a video call. Hiro raised an eyebrow. Hardly anyone used Clickchat anymore. The only person he knew who used Clickchat as much as he did was… Hiro quickly accepted the request and gasped at the sight that appeared on the screen.

"H-hey H-Hiro." Penny sniffed.

"Hello, Hiro." Mrs. Forrester greeted.

Hiro was at a loss for words. Penny looked like a complete mess. Her red eyes and tear-streaked face instantly sent a message to Hiro that something was wrong.

"Penny!" Hiro finally spoke. "W-what happened?"

Penny sniffled and then spoke, "Bolt is gone."

"...What?" Hiro asked, not sure he heard correctly. "He's gone?! B-but...When?! Why?!"

"He disappeared yesterday after the shooting concluded." Mrs. Forrester. "It was a cliffhanger episode. Bolt thought that something bad happened to Penny, so he escaped his trailer to try and look for her. Now, we don't know where he is."

"But-but," Hiro struggled to speak. His mind was running at a thousand miles an hour trying to process the fact that Bolt just disappeared. Then, he remembered Penny's visibly deranged emotional condition. He cast a quick glance at Mrs. Forrester, who nodded, and then he knew what he needed to do. Hiro took a deep breath. "Penny. Look into my eyes."

"…?" Penny slowly lifted her gaze upwards and looked at Hiro's eyes through the screen.

"You were the one who gave me emotional support when I lost someone close to me, so now I'm going to do the same for you." Hiro then cleared his throat. "Penny. You and Bolt share a relationship that I've never seen between owner and pet. Bolt WILL return to you. Not might, he WILL. You've gotta believe that, Penny."

"Uh-huh." Penny choked out.

"Penny." Hiro said. "Remember. You have people who love you and are here to support you. You've got your wonderful mother to give you love and support. I'm envious of you!"

"Oh, stop it, you!" Mrs. Forrester gushed.

Penny smiled.

"And you can always talk to me about anything! I'm here for you Penny. Don't ever forget that."

Penny let out a laugh/cough. "Yeah. You're right. Thank you, Hiro."

"Don't worry." Hiro said. "I'm certain that Bolt will come back to you somehow. Just hang on until he comes back. You're strong Penny. I know you are."

"Thanks, Hiro. You're such wonderful friend." Penny smiled slightly.

"No problem." Hiro said. "Now, turn that frown upside-down and stay strong. For Bolt."

"For Bolt." Penny repeated. "See you later, Hiro."

"Take care, Penny."

* * *

Hiro ended the call and slumped into his chair. Bolt was missing. Could waiting possibly be the only thing that they could do? Hiro thought for a bit, then he looked at his bot-fighter.

"..." Hiro then got an idea. A crazy idea. An incredibly stupid idea that might not even work. "Perfect!" Hiro jumped up and grabbed a notebook and pencil. He was going to help Penny in any way he could, and waiting certainly wasn't going to cut it for him.

"Don't worry Penny." Hiro said while drawing out some designs. "I'm going to make sure you and Bolt get back together, no matter what."

* * *

 **A/N: Alright. That was a real doozy, but things are starting to take shape here. Bolt is missing, but it'll all work out in the end. Promise. If you enjoyed the story so far, please consider showing your support by leaving a comment. That's all for now! Until next time, peace!**


	5. Chapter 4: The Journey Back

**A/N: Greetings, readers! It's a great day to drop another chapter, isn't it? Just so that we are totally clear, I already stated in the first chapter that I don't own any of the franchises in this story. I also managed to catch a few inconsistencies in previous chapters, so I went back and fixed those (Hollywood is not in Florida!). Other than that, I'm sure that some of you are just itching for more, so I won't keep you waiting. Enjoy!**

 **Reviews:**

Zander2212: Thanks for the support! You'll find that out soon...

* * *

 **Chapter 4: The Journey Back**

"You know, I hope you appreciate the risk I'm taking here." Mittens said as she rummaged through a dumpster. "Every bone in my evil cat body is telling me not to betray the trust of the Green-Eyed Man."

Bolt's most recent encounter, Mittens, was a stray black cat who spent most of her time bullying the local pigeons for their food. Bolt mistook Mittens for one of Calico's pets and threatened Mittens for information by dangling her over a busy interstate. Mittens then managed to see Bolt's collar say "Florida," and she promised to show Bolt how to get there.

"Okay. This is a top, top secret map of the entire Earth." Mittens said while laying out a cheap paper map of the United States from a nearby restaurant. "Now we're over here,  
by the little spire," Mittens pointed to Seattle, Washington. "And my boss has Penny locked up…Uh…" Mittens looked around. "Right...right over...here, here! By the alligator in the lawn chair! So all you have to do is get from here to there! It might take you a few weeks, but you'll get there."

"Hmm." Bolt looked at the map. "I don't have a few weeks, cat. I need to get there now."

"Well, I told you where to find her so if you'll just untie me, I'll be on my wa-"

"Wait." Bolt looked at the map a little closer. "What's that place?" He pointed to a small futuristic blimp above the words, "San Fransokyo."

"That's San Fransokyo." Mittens said. "But you're going to want to head east if you want to get to where Penny is being held."

"Wait," Old memories that Bolt wanted to remember refused to make themselves known, but Bolt then vaguely remembered a boy with messy black hair from a while back. "I think we should go to San Fransokyo instead." Bolt suddenly decided.

Mittens then paused and stared at Bolt in shock. "Why would you want to go in the opposite direction than the way you need to go? And what do you mean by 'we'?"

"I'll release you, cat, when we find Penny."

"Excuse me?" Mittens asked. "That wasn't the deal. We had a deal!"

"Well, your deal just expired." Bolt growled.

"She said that to me not ten minutes ago." A pigeon said to his acquaintances. "Oh! The irony!"

Bolt then walked out of the alley while dragging Mittens with him. "Ooh!" Bolt spotted a moving truck with a San Fransokyo decal on it. "Perfect." Bolt walked over to the truck and saw it was locked. "Padlocked." Bolt noted before staring intensely at the lock.

"Listen, Cujo, I got some pretty wicked claws under these mitts. Do not, I beg of you, do not make me bring out these bad boys. It gets ugly." Mittens threatened before looking at Bolt. "What are you doing?"

"Stay back!" Bolt ordered. "If I stare at the lock really hard, it'll burst into flames and melt."

"Now I'm concerned on a number of levels." Mittens grumbled while continuing to try and release herself from the leash.

Bolt then heard a door open right next to them and ran off to avoid being detected. However, in the process, Mittens was dragged behind him and hit her head on a postage box, knocking her out.

Bolt then noticed a couch right next to the truck with a fat guy sitting on it. The guy was wearing a uniform that matched the truck's company. Bolt then got an idea. He found a coin on the sidewalk and tossed it towards the moving guy. It rolled on the ground and stopped right in front of him.

"Hey, lucky penny!" the guy on the couch said while picking up the coin and tossing it in the air.

"Thanks!" his coworker came back with the keys to the truck and caught the penny out of the air. "Now, move your butt."

Bolt and Mittens hung from the bottom of the couch as it was being loaded onto the truck. They were soon on the truck and on their way.

* * *

Penny and her mother were looking at some pictures of Bolt inside of Bolt's trailer. Penny had tried to keep it together like Hiro asked, but it was too much for her to keep bottled up. She sniffled softly as her mother held her in her arms.

A knock on the door got their attention. Agent walked in with a smile on his face.

"I have got some good news!" He announced.

"Really?" Penny jumped up with a small sliver of hope.

"Yes, I do." Agent said before clearing his throat. "I just booked you  
on _The Tonight Show_ , lead guest!"

Penny's face instantly fell.

"W-which means just absolutely nothing if Bolt is still missing." Agent said after remembering the situation. "It's not even good news, like, 'whatever,' 'so what?' The Tonight Show, who cares? I don't care."

"Aw, It's okay, baby." Mrs. Forrester comforted.

"He must be so scared." Penny lamented.

"Scared?" Mrs. Forrester wiped her daughter's tears. "Well, this is Bolt we're talking about. He's not scared of anything."

"I bet Bolt would want you to do The Tonight Show." Agent butt in.

Mrs. Forrester suddenly glowered at Agent.

"Or...maybe not."

"Bolt loves you very much, sweetie, and you're here." Mrs. Forrester assured. "He couldn't have gone far."

"...I think that I should be going, now." Agent said while slinking towards the trailer door. Before he left, he looked back at Penny. "Just...make sure to consider The Tonight Show, please? Thanks." He then zipped out the door to avoid the angry look from Mrs. Forrester.

* * *

Hiro was in his usual spot in the garage, in front of the computer doing some designing and programming. His latest project had come along nicely, and now hiro was trying to make his idea go from a computer screen to a tangible object.

"I sure hope Penny is doing okay." Hiro said to himself as he worked. Hiro and Penny had been contacting each other frequently the last few days so that Penny could receive all the emotional support she could get from Hiro. Hiro could still feel Penny's sorrow from losing Bolt, and for some reason, it affected him, too. It was almost as if Hiro could feel Penny's hurting even from across the country. It was strange.

"Hello, Hiro." A voice said from behind Hiro. Hiro turned around to see his faithful robotic healthcare companion standing behind him. "I detected unusual fluctuations in your body chemicals, suggesting rapid mood swings. What seems to be the trouble?"

"Hey, Baymax." Hiro turned back around to his computer screen. "Do you remember Penny Forrester from a few years back?"

"I do." Baymax reported. "She was patient #00001 according to my databanks. She was suffering from slight bruise development on her elbow."

"Yeah, that's her." Hiro said. "Well, she's going through some pretty intense emotional struggles right now. She just lost her best friend, Bolt."

"I have downloaded a database on personal loss, applicable to this particular type of situation." Baymax reported. Hiro remembered that Baymax had downloaded the database when Hiro was suffering from depression. "Treatments include contact with friends and loved ones."

"Heh, yeah." Hiro said "I've been talking with Penny for the past few days, but she hasn't gotten much better."

"Perseverance will assist in helping your close companion." Baymax stated. "Even if it appears ineffective, keep trying and it will eventually work."

"..." Hiro remembered how his friends had helped him through his own depression when he lost Tadashi. He then realized how important it was for Penny to be surrounded by those she could trust and love. Hiro then got a determined look on his face and looked down at his hand. "Penny, I made a promise to your mom that I would help you in any way I could, and I'm not going to stop until Bolt is back in your arms." Hiro then resumed work on his project with Baymax noticing Hiro's adrenaline levels increasing dramatically.

* * *

"We have before us a legend: Bolt, the superdog! He can outrun speeding missiles and burn through solid metal with his heat vision. Oh! And best of all, he can obliterate large structures with his superbark!" A small hamster in a plastic ball was flipping out at seeing Bolt in person.

Near the border of Washington and Oregon, Bolt and Mittens had abandoned truck after Bolt was dunked with a box of styrofoam and Bolt panicked. After a slight dispute, Bolt's stomach then growled and Mittens revealed to Bolt that he was hungry. Being in a studio for a while, Bolt had been constantly fed and cared for so being hungry was a foreign concept. Mittens had taught Bolt how to beg for food from the nearby RV campsite, and that's how they met Rhino the hamster.

"Wait a minute." Mittens said. "You've seen the superbark?"

"Have you been observing me?" Bolt asked.

"Oh, yeah!" Rhino said excitedly. "I watch you all the time!"

"That's incredible." Bolt said.

""But I'm always so vigilant. No one can evade my detection." Bolt pondered for a moment, then looked at Rhino. "You're a phantom."

"Uh...if you say so!" Rhino then showed his side mark to Bolt. "Hey, check it out. Take a gander at this Bolt action. Scary, huh? It's like we're twins."

"Yeah..." Bolt said slowly. "Scary."

"So," Rhino then asked. "Where's Penny?"

"She was kidnapped by the Green-Eyed Man." Bolt reported.

"Kidnapped?" Rhino looked shaken. "This is terrible! She could be in grave..."

"Grave danger. I know. But I've captured this cat."

Rhino eyed Mittens. "An agent of the green-eyed man, I presume?"

"You presume correctly. She's taking me to Penny."

Rhino then rolled right over to Mittens and glared at her in the face. "You, you are vile vermin.  
How do you sleep at night? Penny's the most wonderful person ever, and she loves Bolt. And he's awesome, and you're a monster! How dare you disrupt their relationship with your evil!" Rhino then charged at Mittens. "Die! Die!"

"Whoa! Whoa! Easy, easy, Rhino. Easy." Bolt stopped Rhino from trying to attack Mittens.

"You're right." Rhino calmed down. "We need her alive."

"Uh…'we'?" Mittens asked incredulously.

"Yes! Bolt, I can be a valuable addition to your team." Rhino declared.

"I'm listening." Bolt said while looking the hamster in the eye.

"I'm lightning-quick, I have razor-sharp reflexes, and I'm a master of stealth!" Rhino then looked back at Mittens. "Plus, I'll keep the cat in check."

"The road'll be rough." Bolt warned.

"I have a ball."

"There's no turning back."

"Guess I'll have to roll with the punches."

"Easy won't be part of the equation."

"Promise?"

"I gotta warn you." Bolt said. "Going into the belly of the beast, danger at every turn."

"I eat danger for breakfast."

"You hungry!?"

Rhino cracked his neck. "Starving!"

"Welcome aboard!"

Mittens looked like she wanted to protest, but Bolt gave her a look and she immediately shut up.

Rhino then rolled over and began attacking Mittens again. "Move it, prisoner." He ordered. "We're losing daylight."

"I agree." Said Bolt. "Now, we need to find a fast set of wheels."

At that moment, a freight train passed under a nearby bridge heading in the exact direction that Bolt knew San Fransokyo was in. He and Rhino cast glances at each other, and they both grinned.

* * *

Penny was at her apartment home for the weekend, and she was not faring much better than she had the previous few days. Mrs. Forrester had tried everything to help Penny cheer up. She cooked Penny's favorite foods, she showed Penny old pictures in the family photo albums, and they even went on a walk in the nearby national park they hadn't been able to go to for a while, but no matter what was done, Penny's mood didn't change by any noticeable degree.

Penny was currently on the couch in the living room wrapped in a blanket and closing her eyes while wishing Bolt were with her. A news channel was playing on the TV.

" _We are receiving big news from the city of San Fransokyo, California._ " The newscaster announced. Penny looked up slightly at that. " _The Tadashi Hamada Hall has just completed construction."_ A new reporter said in front of a new-looking building. _"Tadashi Hamada was a rising bright mind, but he was lost in a terrible accident last year. Today, Alistair Krei and his company have just finished building a hall on the campus of the San Fransokyo Institute of Technology, and we got a chance to interview his brother, Hiro Hamada, at the event._ " Hiro then appeared on-screen. His hair looked a little messier than usual.

" _My brother had only one goal in mind when he did anything: To make technology that would help other people. I hope that when people use this building, they remember Tadashi and why he did what he did._ "

Penny smiled a little on the inside. Then, there was a notification sound from her phone. Penny picked up her phone and saw a request for a video call. She accepted the request, and Hiro appeared on the screen.

"Hey, Penny." Hiro greeted with a small smile.

Penny's spirits lifted up at seeing Hiro's face. She wasn't sure why, but seeing Hiro made her happy.

"Hey, Hiro." Penny greeted back with a small smile of her own. "I saw you on TV."

"Oh, yeah?" Hiro asked. "How'd I look?"

"As messy-haired as ever." Penny poked playfully.

"Gah! Not you, too!" Hiro pretended to sound exasperated.

Penny laughed; it was short, but it was genuine. Mrs. Forrester was in the kitchen washing dishes. When she heard her daughter laugh, a smile appeared on her face as she continued to clean.

"Anyway, I called to check up on you." Hiro said. "How have you been doing?"

"A little better." Penny lied. She was still distraught over Bolt's disappearance. "I'll be fine, though."

"That's great." Hiro said. "Hey, Penny. Do you think you could do me a favor?"

"Mm?" Penny asked.

"Do you think you could, like, find some of Bolt's hair or something and send it to me? I really need it." Hiro requested.

"Uh, sure..." Penny found the request a bit odd. "I could find some for you, but why do you need it?"

"I'm working on something that might be able to help me find Bolt." Hiro said. "You know my mailing address, right?"

"Yeah." Penny said. "I'll be sure to send it to you as soon as I can."

"Thanks, Pen. You're the best." Hiro thanked.

"N-no problem." Penny said.

Hiro gave one last smile and ended the video call. Penny then flushed a slight pink.

'He's helping look for Bolt for me. And he called me "Pen..."' She thought to herself. 'A nickname. Is Hiro really that close to me? Am I really that close to Hiro?'

Mrs. Forrester looked over her shoulder to see why Penny had suddenly fallen silent, and she saw the slight blush on her daughter's face. She smiled to herself, but said nothing.

* * *

Hiro had been neglecting some sleep for the past few days to work, and it was starting to become visible with bags forming under his eyes. Hiro sighed and turned back to his project. It was still just a prototype, but Hiro was starting to do initial testing with it with limited success. Hiro then thought of Penny from the most recent video call.

"Hello, Hiro." Baymax came up from behind holding a tray with a cup of water on it. "Your aunt asked me to give this to you."

"Wow, thanks." Hiro said as he accepted the cup and chugged the contents.

"You should seek constant fluid intake throughout the day to maintain your health." Baymax reported. "And you should also be getting more sleep than you have been over the last few days. You should get a doctor recommended 7 to 8 hours of sleep every ni-"

"Yeah, yeah." Hiro said absentmindedly. "I'll keep that in mind." His thoughts then returned to Penny. 'I just called her "Pen"' He thought to himself. 'I just gave her a nickname. Only super-close friends do that. I'm also going out of my way to help her find Bolt. Am I really just doing it so that Bolt can be back with Penny? Or am I doing it so that she'll be happy?' Another thought then manifested. 'Do I like Penny more than just a friend?' At that, a slight blush formed on Hiro's face.

"Your endorphin levels have increased dramatically." Baymax suddenly interrupted Hiro's thoughts. "The particular pattern I am detecting is that of someone who is harboring deep feelings for another. Diagnosis: you have found someone you genuinely love."

"Wait, w-what?!" Hiro was shocked at Baymax's analysis. "W-what are you talking about?! Me and Penny are just friends! That's all! Nothing more!"

"Your body chemical levels increased shortly after your most recent digital conversation." Baymax stated. "I will scan your browsing records now."

"Wait! Wait! Nonononononono!" Hiro panicked.

"Scan complete." Baymax said. "Your most recent conversation was with Penny Forrester. Given this new information, and including the fact that you exhibited signs of deep feelings shortly after your digital conversation, I conclude that you have deep feelings for Penny Forrester. Is this conclusion accurate?"

Hiro said nothing. He slammed his head down on the table and groaned.

"Tadashi, are you sure you didn't build Baymax just to annoy me after you were gone?"

"I am now detecting a slight bruise developing on your forehead." Baymax said.

Hiro just groaned again.

* * *

An animal control truck rolled up to a gas station, and the driver got out to refuel. One of the compartment doors on the truck had a small dent on it from the inside.

Rhino, who had been pursuing the truck for awhile now, finally caught up while breathing heavily. "Ring-ring. Who is it? Destiny? I've been expecting your call." Rhino then opened his ball from the inside and stepped out. He stepped out slowly at first, but when he finally left his ball completely, Rhino realized his situation and began to laugh maniacally. He then climbed onto the truck and walked over to the containment cells.

"Ow!" Bolt cried as he rammed his head against the door to his cell for what seemed like the hundredth time in the last hour. Bolt was certain that the truck was made of styrofoam, which was why he couldn't break open the door.

"Would you give it up already?" Mittens snapped. "You're liquefying whatever brains you have left." Mittens had discovered that Bolt was a TV actor, and she had been trying to tell him for a while now that his powers weren't real.

The truck driver finished refueling and climbed back in. He started driving just as Rhino found Bolt's cell and saw a latch.

"I cannot be contained in any container." Bolt drawled. He was getting nauseous from ramming his head on the door non-stop. "You quitter. Watch this."

Rhino then unlocked the door just as Bolt charged at the door one more time. Bolt then burst out of the truck, tumbled on the ground, splashed in a puddle, and then came to a stop. Bolt looked around in confusion, and then realized where he was: out of the truck.

"I did it! I'm back!" Bolt cheered. "That styrofoam is wicked stuff.

"Fully awesome!" Rhino started dancing. "There's no truck that I know that can keep in Bolt and Rhino!"

"Rhino?" Bolt looked confused. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, nothing. I was enjoying an evening stroll and thought I'd just pop the hatch on that containment unit." Rhino said proudly.

Bolt then realized how he had gotten out of the truck.

"You-you opened the door?" Bolt asked.

"Yes I did!" Rhino declared. "Yoink!"

"That-that's great, Rhino." Bolt said as realization slowly dawned on Bolt. "Yeah, that's really good."

"All right." Rhino started walking off. "Let's go get the prisoner back."

Bolt followed slowly behind, but then he stopped and looked at the lightning-bolt mark on his side. He ran a paw over the mark, and when he brought it to his face, he saw that it had black ink marks on it. Realization hit Bolt like a tidal wave. He was no superdog. He didn't gain any powers back then. He was just a normal dog who had been lied to for almost a year that he did have superpowers. Then, the rest of Bolt's journey up to that point made sense. Because Bolt thought that he was a superdog, he had been separated far from Penny. What had he done? Mittens was right.

"I can't do it." Bolt said while sadly staring at the ground.

Rhino then stopped and turned around in shock. "What did you say?!"

"I can't." Bolt said. Realization and humility pressed down on Bolt like a mountain.

"Who are you!?" Rhino suddenly demanded.

"Rhino, You just don't understa-" Bolt started.

"You! Are Bolt!" Rhino interrupted.

"But I'm not a-" Bolt started again.

"Who single handedly destroyed the Green-Eyed Man's undersea labs?" Rhino interrupted again.

"Me." Bolt replied. "But-"

"And who foiled his plan to infiltrate the Olympics with gymnastic cyborgs?" Rhino demanded. "Who, Bolt, who? Who?"

"Me, but none of it was-"

"You!" Rhino pointed at Bolt. "You can, Bolt! Because all over this planet, there are animals who feel like they can't. Like a little hamster who once spent his days in an RV park, dreaming of the day when he, too, would save a little girl from danger and be told, 'You did it! You did it, Rhino! You saved the day.'"

Bolt looked at Rhino with disbelieving eyes.

"They need a hero, Bolt." Rhino continued. "Someone who, no matter what the odds, will do what's right. They need a hero to tell them that sometimes the impossible can become possible if you're awesome!"

"Well," Bolt admitted. "You're right about one thing, Rhino. Mittens does need a hero, and I guess I'll have to do."

"Great!" Rhino said. "Now, who's going to save that cat?"

"Me." Bolt said firmly.

"Who? Tell me who!"

"Me." Bolt said with a new-found motivation.

Rhino excitedly squeaked. "I'll get my ball."

* * *

 **Much Later...**

Bolt, Mittens, and Rhino ran away from the animal shelter as a massive fireball erupted from what was once a new truck.

"We need a ride." Mittens said as they reached a road.

"Ooh! I've got a big one!" Rhino pointed towards a truck hauling a house on its back. "You're welcome."

Mittens, Bolt, and Rhino all made it safely into the truck and starting breathing sighs of relief.

"I can't believe it." Rhino said happily as he rolled away. "My whole life I've wanted to see  
a real live superbark! You are legendary!"

Bolt and Mittens awkwardly looked at each other.

"Mittens." Bolt started. "If...if I don't chase bad guys, then what am I? I mean, what..."

"Ah, don't worry about it! Being a regular dog is, like, the greatest gig in the world. Okay?" Mittens then walked over to look at Bolt's face. "Look. I'm gonna let you in  
on a little secret, okay? A little-known cat secret. You know why we hate dogs? 'Cause we wanna be dogs. We have dog complexes."

"But what do dogs do?" Bolt asked.

Mittens smiled.

During their time in the house, Mittens told Bolt how to act like a normal dog.

"You sure seem to know a lot about these places." Bolt commented the next day.

"Yeah, I did my time in one of these, but I'm more of an alley cat at heart,  
you know?" Mittens said. "Got bored after while, though, and sprung out first chance I got. Never looked back."

"Huh." Bolt said.

" _Rhino is awesome!_ " Rhino's voice came from an air duct. " _He's so awesome!_ "

Bolt and Mittens looked at each other, then went around the hallway to find Rhino speaking into another air vent.

"He's...He's beyond awesome! He...He's be-awesome!" Rhino didn't notice Bolt and Mittens behind him. "He's...ah!" An awkward moment ensued. "I... I am be-awesome."

The next few days were quite the adventure for the trio. Everytime a truck started heading in the wrong direction, the group hopped off and walked until they found a new mode of transportation. They ate out of dumpsters while tracking their progress on maps at fast-food restaurants. All the while, Mittens taught Bolt everything there was to know about being a normal dog. She taught him how to fetch, she taught him how to obey commands, and she even taught him how to stick his head out the window and enjoy the breeze. Every day, the group came closer and closer to their destination.

"Don't worry, Penny" Bolt kept saying to himself althroughout the journey. "I'll be back soon. And I'll be able to be more than just your guardian, I'll be your dog."

* * *

A copy machine was running. Penny and her mother were printing out several lost dog posters that had a picture of Bolt on them. Penny had decided that after seeing Hiro in action to find Bolt instead of waiting, she needed to act too. Both of the Forresters were unaware of Agent outside the door looking rather excited.

"Look who we found, young lady." Agent said while dramatically waving his hands. Another staff member was carried a pet cage in. "It's Bolt! They found him."

"Bolt!" Penny was overjoyed as a white shepherd dog hopped out of the cage and barked happily.

"Yeah, that's right. The little puppy dog." Agent said while standing nearby.

Bolt then broke off of Penny's embrace and sat on the front in front of her. Penny then realized something was not right.

"That is not Bolt." She then said.

Agent felt a waterfall of sweat build up on his head. "Well, that depends on how you look at it. You know, when I was little, I wanted a bicycle for my birthday, but my parents got me a baseball glove. So, you know what I did? I pretended that baseball glove was a bicycle, and I rode it to school every day. True story."

"It's not him." Penny firmly insisted.

"I think it's him. I do." Agent said nervously.

Someone cleared her throat from behind Agent. It was Mindy from the networking division. She was holding a cup of coffee.

"Thank you." She said while shooing Agent away. "Look, kid. It's time we were honest with you. If we don't get back into production, people are going to lose their jobs. Good people, with families."

"But Bolt's still out there, and..." Penny began to protest.

"Now, we feel for you, and the last thing we wanna do is ask a little girl to make a grown-up decision, but it's come to that. We need you to move on. We need you to let Bolt go." Mindy had a stern but pitying expression on her face.

Penny saw that there was no point in arguing. She looked down at the Bolt look-alike, who gave her a toothy smile while hanging out his tongue. She then turned back to the copy machine, which was still printing out poster. With some hesitance, she pressed the stop button.

"There, that's a good girl." Mindy said. "We're working on getting an air date, so sit tight." She then walked out of the room. The staff member put the Bolt look-alike back into the cage and followed.

"..." Agent looked like he wanted to say something, but Mrs. Forrester's withering gaze kept him silent. He then bolted out of the room and shut the door behind him.

Mrs. Forrester then turned back to Penny, who was hanging her head low. "Honey? Are you okay?"

Penny didn't say anything. She then walked over to the door and exited the copy room. Mrs. Forrester hurriedly followed after her daughter. Penny walked back to Bolt's trailer without saying a word. Mrs. Forrester followed her child in, and once both of them were in the trailer, she shut the door behind her.

"Sweetie?" Mrs. Forrester asked again in a slightly worried tone.

Penny then dropped to her knees and began crying out loud. She had her hands over her face as tears streamed from her eyes.

Mrs. Forrester immediately rushed over to her child and gave her a big hug, which Penny returned.

"W-w-why won't t-t-they understand?!" Penny wailed into her mother's shoulder. "I-I d-don't want Bolt to come back! I n-need Bolt to come back! I c-can't d-do it without him!"

"I know, sweetie. I know." Mrs. Forrester softly rubbed Penny's hair as she continued to sob into her shoulder. "Those are stubborn people. They don't even care that Bolt is gone. They just want the show to go on so that they can get their hands on their money. It's truly despicable."

"I-i-is Bolt never g-gonna come b-back?" Penny asked. "I-is he really g-gone for g-good?"

"No! Don't you say that!" Mrs. Forrester chastised. "Bolt's not gone. I know that for a fact. But you have to keep yourself from doubting until he does!"

"B-but..." Penny began.

"No buts." Mrs. Forrester said firmly. "Bolt's going to come back to you come Hell or high water. He's your best friend, and will do whatever it takes to come back to you and make you happy again. He cares for you like no other pet I've ever seen before."

Penny looked up at her mother.

"Remember when we first got Bolt, sweetie?" Mrs. Forrester asked as she wiped her daughter's tears away. "He was so happy to see you, and you to see him. Ever since that day, you two were inseparable."

"R-really?" Penny sniffled.

"And that's when I took you out of public schooling so that you and Bolt could spend more time with each other, remember?" Mrs. Forrester smiled at the memory of Penny celebrating when she heard she would be with Bolt all day every day.

"Y-yeah." Penny smiled a little at that happy memory. "I was so happy."

"See?" Mrs. Forrester said. "You and Bolt are a special bunch. He's probably coming back to you right now. You just have to trust that he'll come back." She then gave Penny a warm motherly hug. "It'll be alright."

Penny smiled, closed her eyes, and accepted her mother's embrace. 'Bolt.' Penny thought to herself. 'Please, come home soon.'

* * *

Hiro had just finished setting up the last poster outside of the Lucky Cat Cafe window. Yesterday, Penny had sent Hiro a file that contained Bolt's lost dog poster. Penny had asked Hiro to put up the posters for even the slightest possibility that Bolt was in San Fransokyo. Hiro agreed to the task in order to encourage Penny.

Hiro came back into the cafe and looked at the television on the wall. A news reporter was talking about the continuing debate between France and Belgium over rights on the invention of French Fries. Hiro shook his head and sat down at an empty table while taking out his phone.

"Thank you! Come again!" Aunt Cass bade a young couple farewell as they left the cafe. Business was pretty normal in the cafe that day with a few people outside the cafe and a few inside chatting with their friends. Hiro was looking through his email to see if anything new had arrived.

" _We have just received news from management at Sparkling Core Films._ " The news reporter suddenly announced on the TV. Hiro's attention was suddenly fixed onto the TV. Sparkling Core Films was where Penny shot her show.

" _They have released news regarding the television program,_ Bolt." The newscaster continued. A short, dark-skinned woman suddenly appeared on the screen. An information strip below her appeared that said, "Mindy Thompson, Chief of Networking."

" _We apologize to all the viewers of_ Bolt." Mindy began. " _But we came across a difficulty with one of the actors that prevented us from shooting. However, the issue has been cleared up and we will resume airing very soon._ "

Hiro was suddenly enraged at this Mindy. Bolt was gone and Penny became an emotional wreck after it happened. And now, here was this lady treating it as if it wasn't a big deal! Even worse, they were going to keep filming even though Bolt was still missing! As Hiro sat fuming, his phone suddenly buzzed. Hiro looked down and saw that someone was requesting a video call with him, and Hiro knew that it could only be one person.

"Aunt Cass!" Hiro called. "I'll be in my room!"

"Okay, my little college man!" Aunt Cass said as she brought a scone and coffee to a waiting customer.

Hiro ran up to his room and turned on his computer. He rushed to open the video call, unaware of a poofy white robot coming up behind him.

"Hiro?" Baymax asked. "Your blood pressure is elevated. Is there something wro-"

"Sorry, Baymax." Hiro said as he opened the video call and waited for his camera to boot up. "But now's really not a good time."

After so many previous events similar to this one, Baymax understood and went back to his charging station.

The image finally popped up, and Hiro's heart sank while his jaw hit the desk. Penny had fresh tear stains on her face, and her mother was sitting next to her while trying to comfort her.

"Penny!" Hiro exclaimed. words then began flying out of his mouth. "What's going on over there?! They're continuing the show! How is that going to happen without Bolt?!"

"Hiro, please." Mrs. Forrester said in a tight voice. "Calm down, We'll answer your questions one at a time, and please keep your voice down."

"...Ah." Hiro realized how he had been acting and sat back into his seat. "Sorry. Okay. First off, what happened?"

"T-they needed t-to c-continue the show." Penny stammered. She was in worse condition than Hiro had ever seen before. "We're g-going t-to start filming ag-gain this w-week."

"Wha-" Hiro was shocked out of his mind. "How are they going to keep filming if Bolt's still missing?"

Penny suddenly let out a slight hiccup while Mrs. Forrester bent down to pick something up. She then showed it to Hiro, and his heart nearly stopped. It was a dog that looked exactly like Bolt. If Hiro didn't know better, he would have thought that it was Bolt. However, he could tell, even if through a screen, that this dog was definitely not Bolt. Hiro stared in shock for a few moments before speaking.

"Are they crazy?!" Hiro cried. "They want you to film without Bolt?!"

"Penny's agent and Mindy from networking came up with the idea." Mrs. Forrester said while putting the Bolt look-alike down. "They said that the show needed to go on or people might lose their jobs."

Hiro's mind was rushing faster than a rocket in orbit. He already disliked Mindy for making Penny continue shooting without Bolt, and if her agent was on board with the idea, then Hiro already had a strong dislike for him, too.

Hiro knew that unless Penny was filming with Bolt, it wouldn't be anywhere near as good of a performance. His mind was racing, trying to think of something that would help Penny. Anything at all. Hiro's eyes then drifted to a certain spot on his desk. He then saw what he had been working on for the last few days. Hiro's eyes then lit up.

"Wait a second!" Hiro then grabbed the device and showed it to the Forresters.

"...What is that?" Mrs. Forrester examined the object in Hiro's hand. It was roughly rectangular in shape with rounded edges. A small satellite dish was on one end, and a large red circle was on one face surrounded by buttons. Above the buttons and circle, there was a small screen.

"Penny, remember when I asked you for some of Bolt's hair?" Hiro asked.

Penny nodded silently.

"Well, this thing right here is a DNA locator." Hiro said. "I just pop a sample into this compartment," Hiro pressed the big red circle, and it opened up. "And it will automatically lead me to the DNA's host. I made this so that I might be able to find Bolt using his DNA."

Penny looked at the screen with slightly wider eyes. "You made that to find Bolt?" she asked.

"Yeah. It works really well, but the range is still kind of short." Hiro explained. "I'm trying to find a way to increase the range of the scanner. Once I do that, I'll be able to find Bolt."

Penny looked at the device, and then back at Hiro. She then let out a microscopic smile.

"Thank you, Hiro." She finally said. Tears were starting to come back into her eyes. "First you offer to help with the posters, and now this. You've been so helpful to me. You're the best friend I could've asked for."

"Aw, shucks." Hiro said while blushing slightly. He then looked at Mrs. Forrester.

"Thank you, Hiro." Mrs. Forrester said. "You're keeping up with your promise, and I am grateful for that."

"For Penny. Of course." Hiro said. He then looked at Penny, who was wiping her new tears away. "Penny."

She looked up at him.

"I'm going to make sure that Bolt gets back to you, so hang in there, alright?"

Penny nodded. A knocking on the door could be heard.

"Oh, I have to go now." Penny's face fell slightly. "I need to practice for the shoot." She then looked back at the screen. "Thanks for everything, Hiro. I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"You got it." Hiro said. "Take care, alright?"

Penny nodded one last time and ended the call.

Hiro sank back into his chair and looked at the device in his hand.

'I made a promise."' Hiro thought to himself. 'I said that I'll make sure that Bolt will make it back to Penny, and I don't break promises. Especially ones I make with Penny.'

Hiro then looked back at the device in his hand. The range problem was probably going to take a while to fix. So, until he fixed it, he would need a little more manpower. Hiro then opened another video call. He was going to need to tell his friends everything.

* * *

 **Good, now things are ramping up! I just came back from a conference, so I'll be able to write more now that I'm home. As always, if you enjoyed what you read so far, please consider supporting the story by leaving a comment. Until next time, peace!**


	6. Chapter 5: Lost and Found

**A/N: Hello again! I back and with some fresh words for y'all. I am getting excited for the next few chapters, and I hope that you all are too! I can tell that y'all like this story from the number of views on it, so I'd like to thank y'all for the support. I'd also like to recognize a few names:**

 **AndrewJohnston7**

 **Moore98Luke**

 **SamanthaPerry0**

 **Thank you all for favoriting and following the story. And thank you to all of you readers who are taking the time just to read the story. I'll be sure to keep updating it as much as I can. And, without further ado, I present chapter 5. Enjoy!**

 **(BTW, if there is an instance where a human and an animal seem to be talking, they aren't. The animal can understand the human, but the human cannot understand the animal. In this universe, animals can understand and read, but humans can't speak to the animals. Got it? Good.)**

* * *

 **Chapter 5: Lost and Found**

Bolt was slowly trudging towards San Fransokyo with his head low. Mittens and Rhino were nowhere to be seen. Bolt looked up at a sign that said, "San Fransokyo: Exit 45" Bolt then continued walking towards San Fransokyo while thinking about what had happened not even an hour ago.

 _Bolt rolled in his sleep. He was full from last night's dumpster run. Rhino snored next to him while murmuring something incomprehensible._

" _Bolt, wake up." Mittens said._

 _Bolt opened his eyes to see Mittens in front of him with a smile on her face._

" _Come on!" Mittens said. "I've got a surprise for you."_

 _Mittens and Bolt walked over to a junk pile, and Bolt had his eyes closed._

" _Okay, okay. No peeking." Mittens commanded. "All right, now, open them."_

 _Bolt opened his eyes. He saw in front of him two cardboard boxes. One was bigger than the other, and both had a small cushion inside of them._

" _Bask in the glow, baby." Mittens said before walking over to the boxes._

" _I...uh..." Bolt started before slowly following Mittens._

" _Just let me give you the grand tour. Okay?" Mittens said. "This one, this one's mine, and this one is all yours."_

" _Mittens, I..." Bolt started again._

" _Oh!" Mittens then jumped on Bolt's pillow "I found this really soft pillow thing for get this. I found some Styrofoam, and I stuffed it inside, which I thought was both kind of creative and ironic. You know what I mean?"_

" _Mittens, I don't think that..."_

" _Ooh! Ooh!" Mittens then kicked out a stick that was holding up a box flap. The flap came down and covered the box's open side. "Check it out. Total privacy, and completely soundproof."_

" _Yeah, well, I don't think that I…"_

" _Okay, I lied. It's not soundproof. But you know…"_

" _Mittens," Bolt interrupted firmly. "I can't stay here."_

 _A short silence ensued, and then Mittens peeked her head out of the box._

" _What?" Mittens asked. She had a look of disbelief on her face._

" _I'm almost back to Penny." Bolt looked down._

" _You're still going back to her?" Asked Mittens._

" _Mittens, she's my person" Bolt said._

 _Mittens frowned and then started dragging Bolt by his ear._

" _Ow! Ow! Ow!" Bolt protested. "Ear, ear."_

 _Mittens then let go and jumped on a rusty old truck._

" _Look at me, Bolt. I'm real." Mittens said. "Now, how about this? Is that real?"_

 _Mittens pointed towards a sign that was advertising Bolt's show._

" _Now, how about this?" Mittens pointed to another part of the sign ad. "Is that real? Does this look real to you? Or that? Is that real? Or that? How about that, Bolt?" Mittens finally pointed to Penny. "She's an actress. She's just pretending."_

" _Not Penny." Bolt said firmly._

" _There is no Penny. She's fake." Mittens argued._

" _No, you're wrong." Bolt declared. "She loves me."_

" _No, no, Bolt. That's what they do, okay?" Mitten's voice began to gain volume. "They act like they love you. They act like they'll be there forever, and then one day they'll pack up all their stuff and move away and take their love with them, and leave their declawed cat behind  
to fend for herself! They leave her wondering what she did wrong." Mittens then sat down facing away from Bolt._

 _Bolt was shocked at the sudden revelation. Penny had always been there for him, and he for her. But Mittens was abandoned by her owners; she didn't leave by herself. The idea of Penny abandoning Bolt was almost too painful to even think about. But bolt knew Penny. He knew that she would never leave him no matter what._

" _I...I'm sorry, Mittens, but Penny is different." Bolt finally said. He had to get back to Penny, no matter what._

" _Then go." Mittens said without looking._

 _"Mittens, I-"_

 _Get out of here, Bolt. I never should've taken pity on you."_

" _Mittens-" Bolt tried one last time._

" _Just get out of here, Bolt!"_

 _Bolt paused. He then slowly turned away and began walking towards the road. He then turned back one last time._

" _You take care, Mittens." Bolt said. "Thanks for everything." He then started down the side of the road._

 _If Bolt had been able to see Mitten's face, he would have seen the growing lines of a sad cat face developing._

Bolt was incredibly saddened for leaving Mittens and Rhino behind, but he knew that he had to go back to Penny no matter what. If Mittens and Rhino didn't want to go with him, he had no other choice than to continue walking by himself.

"?" Bolt then noticed that the ground around him was starting to glow a distinct purple. Bolt looked up, and he saw a sign that read, "San Fransokyo! You made it!" below the words, there was a picture of a little robot man waving his hand and smiling.

"I made it." Bolt said as he looked up and saw dozens of skyscrapers, wind turbines, and glowing tech. Before Bolt was the city of San Fransokyo in all of its majestic technological glory.

* * *

Mittens sat in front of a trash can lid with food on it, but she didn't feel like eating. What she had said to Bolt weighed heavily on her mind, but it was the truth and Mittens had to tell Bolt about it. Mittens turned her head when she heard a sound come from behind a dumpster.

"Ooooh man." Rhino groaned. "That meat lover's pizza is not loving me back at all."

"Hey there, Rhino." Mittens said somberly.

"Morning, cat." Rhino said while yawning. He then looked around. "Where's Bolt?

"He's...uh..." Mittens tried to think of something to say. "He's gone."

"Bolt...left?" Rhino asked.

"Yeah." Said Mittens. "But he instructed me to tell you that he had to face the Green-Eyed Man alone."

Rhino looked shocked for a moment, then he began rolling his ball in the same direction Bolt had gone off in.

"Whoa!" Mittens called out. "Where are you going?"

"To Bolt." Rhino replied without looking back.

"But he doesn't need us anymore." Mittens said.

Rhino stopped and turned around. "Trust me, I've seen it a million times before. In the cold, dark night before the battle, when the steely fangs of evil are sharpened and poised to strike, the hero must go and face his greatest challenge alone. But if Bolt's taught me anything, it's that you never abandon a friend in a time of need." Rhino then turned back around and began rolling again. "When your teammate's in trouble, you go. Whether they ask or not, you go, not knowing if you're coming back dead or alive…" Rhino then turned down the wrong direction.

"He went the other way." Mittens called out.

"You go!" Rhino continued his speech while altering his direction. "Knowing how deep the shrapnel's going to pierce your hide, you go."

Mittens then began to process what Rhino had said. Then, after a short time of thought, Mittens jumped up and ran after Rhino.

* * *

Hiro put up the last lost dog poster he was carrying. It was almost sundown in the outskirts of San Fransokyo.

"Thanks for the help, guys." Hiro said after turning around. Behind him, Gogo, Honey Lemon, Fred, and Wasabi were holding tape, staplers, hammers, and nails. "I couldn't have done it this fast without you."

"Of course, Hiro." Honey Lemon smiled warmly. "We're here for you."

"Though, I am kinda hungry." Fred said. His stomach growled in agreement. "Maybe we could grab some grub."

"Only you would think of food at a time like this." Wasabi said.

"You guys can go now." Hiro said. "That's all I need help with."

"How about you?" asked Gogo. "How're you gonna get home?"

"I'll be fine." Hiro promised. "See you guys later. Have a great break!"

"You too!" Honey Lemon said as the rest of the group climbed into Wasabi's car. After the four were in, Wasabi drove off towards the city.

Hiro then sighed and ran his hand through his hair. He then pulled the DNA locator out of his backpack and looked at it. The range problem was proving more difficult to deal with than Hiro had initially thought. No matter what Hiro seemed to try, the range stayed limited to about 5 kilometers. So, unless Bolt was somehow in San Fransokyo, Hiro would be unable to find him.

"Ugh." Hiro said while he thought to himself. 'I sure hope that Penny's doing okay. She's going to start filming again soon. I'd better hurry.'

Hiro then waved down a taxi and asked to go to the Lucky Cat Cafe. After arriving, Hiro paid his fare and walked into the cafe. It was mostly empty with only two people left inside.

"Hey, Aunt Cass." Hiro greeted as he hung up his jacket.

"Hey there, my little college man." Aunt Cass smiled. "How goes it?"

"We just finished putting up the last posters." Hiro reported. "But I don't know if Penny will be able to hold out much longer unless we find Bolt."

"Well, then." Aunt Cass said. "You'd better hurry. I talked with Susie just now, and Penny isn't doing that great. I told her about the posters, though. It'll help Penny to know that you're looking out for her."

"Thanks, Aunt Cass." Hiro said before walking to the stairs. "I'll be upstairs, alright?"

Aunt Cass smiled, and then went into the kitchen.

Hiro then lay down on his bed and looked at his DNA scanner again.

'I sure am going way out of my break schedule to help Penny out.' Hiro thought to himself. 'Not that that's a bad thing, though. I'm happy to be able to help Penny if it'll make her happy again.'

Hiro then thought back to what Baymax had said, that Hiro was harboring deep feelings for Penny.

'Do I see Penny as someone special to me?' Hiro thought as a blush threatened to make its way onto his face. 'Was Baymax right?'

* * *

"See you tomorrow!" Penny's trainer put the Bolt look-alike back into his cage and walked off with it.

"..." Penny was having conflicted emotions. Sure, she didn't want to cause anyone to lose their job, but working with this new dog felt like she was betraying every instinct in her body telling her that she could only film with Bolt. It left her feeling very confused and wanting Bolt back in her arms. Pushing the thoughts aside as best as she could, Penny walked back to Bolt's trailer.

"Hey, sweetie." Mrs. Forrester greeted as Penny walked in. "How was everything today?"

"It was...fine, I guess." Penny answered. She then sat next to her mother and gave her a big hug. "Thanks for being my hug pillow, mom."

"Of course." Mrs. Forrester said while returning the embrace. "You know, Ms. Cassie called not too long ago."

Penny perked up at that. "Really? What did she say?"

"Well, Cassie says that its break time for college students, and Hiro went out with his friends to put up Bolt's posters around the city." Mrs. Forrester said. "She says he left in the morning and didn't come back until the afternoon. They put up posters all over the city just to find Bolt for you."

Penny's eyes widened. "Really? Hiro did that?"

"Yes, he did." Mrs Forrester said while smiling. "He really cares for you."

Penny then had a thought. "Why is Hiro doing all of this just for me? He's cutting time out of his break to help me. But why would he do all that work?"

Penny didn't realize she had been talking out loud, and her mother's grin grew.

"Maybe..." Mrs. Forrester started. "He thinks of you more than just a good friend?"

Penny then looked up at her mother in shock. She then sharply stood up. "W-what?" A blush threatened to creep onto Penny's face. "You heard me?"

Mrs. Forrester went a step further. "Maybe he has deep feelings for you?"

Penny's face flushed a bright pink. "W-w-where did you get that idea from?!"

"You were acting something like you are now back when you saw him on TV." Mrs. Forrester said while smiling. "Do you think he's that handsome?"

Penny looked like she wanted to die from embarrassment. "You saw that?!"

Mrs. Forrester nodded while still smiling.

"But, I-Aaaahhhh! Mom!" Penny's face was dangerously red. "No! I-it's not what you think! H-he's just a good friend! We aren't romantically attracted to each other!"

"The way you're taking this begs to differ!" Teased Mrs. Forrester. "When are you going to tell him?"

Penny was about to respond, but then there was a knock on the door. Agent walked in.

"Is everything okay in here?" He asked.

Penny looked at Agent, and then she slowly sank to the ground as her knees gave way. "Y-yeah. Everything's fine."

Agent looked a bit skeptical, but he let it slide. "We've just established a shooting date." He said. "We're going to shoot in two days. We just thought you should know."

Penny then remembered the current situation. Bolt was still missing, so it looked as if she was going to film with the Bolt look-alike. She then slowly stood back up.

"Thank you." Penny finally said.

"Only two days and we're back on air!" Agent said excitedly. "Let's do it!" He then left the trailer while whooping.

Penny then walked back over to her mother and sat beside her again. She rested her head on her mother's shoulder and looked at the wall of pictures.

"Don't worry, sweetie." Mrs. Forrester said while stroking her daughter's hair. "It's like I've been telling you. Everything will be alright."

On the wall was a picture of Bolt and Penny together and looking happy together.

"I hope so, mom." Penny said while closing her eyes. "I hope so."

* * *

"Wow! What a place!" Bolt was amazed at the city of San Fransokyo. There was so much to see from the monorails that ran overhead to the glowing signs that were starting to light up as the sun went down.

"Whoa, there Bolty. Focus." Bolt suddenly told himself. He had to find Hiro. He finally remembered the messy-haired boy from what felt like an eternity. If he could find Hiro, Hiro could tell Penny and Penny could come pick him up!

"Uh..." Bolt then remembered his situation. San Fransokyo was a large city, and Bolt had no idea how to find Hiro. Bolt then started walking down the street while avoiding people. He looked high and low, but no Hiro.

"Geez." Bolt said to himself. "You'd think that someone would recognize me in this city." His eyes then wandered to a nearby billboard. Bolt blinked. He then closed his eyes for a count of three and then opened them again. Indeed, there was no mistaking it! It was a lost dog poster with his picture on it!

"Amazing!" Bolt said as he ran over for a better look. "Finally, a lucky break!" Bolt then scrutinized the poster. It had a picture of Bolt and Penny. On the bottom, it read, "If found, please bring to the Lucky Cat Cafe on 1192 Masonic Ave."

"That's right..." Bolt suddenly remembered when he first met Hiro. It was in a cafe themed after cats. "Then that's where I'll find Hiro!" Bolt didn't know where the Lucky Cat Cafe was, but it was a start!

"No way. Wow" a voice from above Bolt suddenly said. Bolt looked up and saw a pigeon perching on top of the billboard. "Bolt. I'm a really big fan of yours, brother."

"I'm Blake." The pigeon introduced. "This is my writing partner, Tom." Another pigeon landed next to Blake. "Tom, say what's up."

"What's up?" Greeted Tom.

"Wow!" a third pigeon exclaimed as it landed next to Tom and Blake.

"Oh." groaned Tom and Blake.

"And this is our personal assistant, Billy." Blake said while glaring at Billy. "Who was supposed to wait up on the wire."

"Bolt, I've admired you for such a long time, and there's something I've always wanted to tell you if I ever got a chance to meet you, and now it's-" Billy rambled.

"Okay, Billy, that was horrifying, what you just did." Blake said. "Why don't you make yourself useful. Go get me some bread crumbs, whole grain. Go." Blake shooed Billy away "Whole wheat is not the same thing as whole grain, Billy!"

"Not the same, Billy." Tom put in.

"Do not come at me with whole wheat!" Blake shouted.

"Or pumpernickel, Billy!" Tom added.

"Okay, guys, but I really gotta get going." Bolt said while backing up slowly, but then an idea formed in Bolt's head. Right as he was about to speak, the pigeon started speaking.

"I know. I know you're a busy dog, but if you've got a second, we'd love to pitch you an idea for your show." Blake then scooted over for Tom. "Tom's better at pitching. I'll let him take it from here. Tommy's got the spotlight. Wait for it."

Tom strolled up dramatically and cleared his throat. "Aliens." He finally said.

"Oh, snap." Blake said.

"Aliens?" Bolt asked.

"Audiences love aliens." Tom explained.

"Holler back!" Blake said excitedly.

"It'll be huge, man. Huge." Tom assured.

"You can't touch us!" Blake seemed enthusiastic about the idea.

"Uh…" Bolt then decided now was the time to ask. "I love it. But I'll tell you what. If you guys can help me find the Lucky Cat Cafe, well, I'd love to hear more about this aliens idea, but on the way."

"We got a nibble." Tom said while shaking excitedly.

"Don't freak out." Blake warned. "This is how you blew it with Nemo."

Bolt was about to run off after the pigeons, but then he heard two voices behind him.

"Bolt!"

"Bolt!"

Bolt then stopped and looked around. It couldn't possibly be!

"Bolt! Rhino's coming!" Rhino was rolling at top speed with Mittens behind him.

"Rhino! Mittens!" Bolt ran over happily. "But, I thought that yo-"

"Ah, forget about that." Mittens said. "We're friends, aren't we? And friends never separate, no matter what."

"Couldn't have said it better myself, cat." Rhino said while sticking his chest out.

Bolt looked at his two friends. "Thanks, you two. You don't know how much this means for me." He then looked at Mittens. "You're going to love Penny. I can tell you that much."

"Well then, let's find that out super pooch." Mittens smiled.

Bolt smiled back, and then he ran off in the direction the two pigeons flew.

"This is so awesome!" Rhino cheered as he rolled after Bolt. "Bolt's coming back to you, Penny!"

* * *

Hiro was lying on his bed. The sun was just about to disappear over the horizon. He had just eaten dinner and was thinking to himself. 'I wonder if I would be able to go to Florida and see Penny over break. I think it would be better if she saw me in person than on a screen. It's been way too long since we've seen each other.'

Hiro then sat up in his bed and thought it over a little more. Then, he went over to his computer and turned the screen on. He prepared to call Penny and Mrs. Forrester to ask them if it would be okay for him to come over for a few days. Just as Hiro hovered his mouse over the call button, he heard a beeping sound.

"Huh?" Hiro looked around to see where it was coming from.

 _Beep Beep._ There it was again! Hiro listened carefully. _Beep Beep_. Hiro looked at his backpack.

"Could it be?" Hiro asked himself. He then walked over to his bag and took out the DNA locator. To Hiro's amazement, the screen was lit up!

"It's detecting the host's DNA!" Hiro suddenly realized. Did that mean Bolt was in the city? Hiro then ran downstairs and grabbed his jacket.

"Hiro?" Aunt Cass asked.

Hiro didn't answer as he charged out of the cafe while looking at his device.

"Huh." Aunt Cass said. She wasn't too concerned. She knew that if Hiro ever went out, he made sure to tell her where he was.

Hiro looked down at his screen, which showed that the signal was coming from somewhere near Hiro. Hiro decided to trust his device and followed after the signal.

"Bolt! Where are you?!" Hiro called out as he ran through the streets. People gave Hiro strange looks, but Hiro didn't care as he continued to weave through crowds of late-night shoppers.

Hiro looked down at the screen again. The signal was even closer! "Bolt! I'm here!" Hiro ran towards the signal and hoped with all his heart that it was Bolt. The signal came closer, and closer, and clo-

"Gah!" Hiro cried as he tripped over something and fell down, dropping the locator.

Thankfully, his jacket's hidden elbow pads prevented Hiro from hurting himself. Hiro was suddenly thankful to himself for installing the pads.

Hiro then looked up and saw the smashed remains of the DNA locator. "Oh no." Hiro's heart sank. How would he find Bolt now? Hiro then looked behind him to see what he had tripped over. It was white and furry. Hiro's heart skipped a beat.

"Ow!" Bolt groaned. "Why can't you people look where you're goi-" Bolt then saw who had tripped over him. It was a young boy with messy black hair. Bolt's eyes went wide.

"Bolt?" Hiro asked.

"Hiro?" Bolt asked.

The two looked at each other for a moment, then Hiro noticed the collar tag. It had the unmistakable name BOLT etched into it. Similar the one from several years ago.

"It's you." Hiro said while looking at Bolt. "It's you! Bolt!" Hiro then stood up and ran over to Bolt. Bolt barked happily and jumped into Hiro's arms. He began licking Hiro's face. Hiro laughed as the two greeted each other in person for the first time in a long while.

"You've been found." Hiro said as he sank to his knees while holding Bolt. "Where have you been?"

Bolt then jumped out of Hiro's arms and barked. A few moments later, a black cat and a hamster in a ball came up to Hiro.

"..." Hiro looked at the two newcomers. The cat meowed politely. The hamster seemed to be eyeing Hiro cautiously.

Bolt then barked to the cat and hamster, and then he sat down looking happy.

"Oh!" Hiro understood. "Are they with you?"

Bolt barked a confirmation.

"Well, it's nice to meet you!" Hiro said while kneeling down and looking at Mittens and Rhino.

"Is this the friend you've been telling us about, Bolt?" Mittens asked.

"Yep." Bolt said. "He's the one."

"Haha!" Rhino said excitedly. "An ally of Bolt! We've made it!"

Hiro then stood back up and looked at the trio. He then looked at Bolt.

"Bolt, we need to get you back to Penny ASAP."

Bolt nodded his head in agreement.

"Come on, all of you." Hiro said while motioning for the animals to follow.

"Come on, guys!" Bolt said while following Hiro. "He'll help us get to Penny."

"Yes!" Rhino said. "We're finally going to Bolt's place!"

Mittens followed after Bolt, Rhino, and Hiro while not being sure what to think of the human.

* * *

Aunt Cass was wiping down the last table. All the customers had left a while ago, and it had started getting dark outside. Aunt Cass began to worry about Hiro, but then the door to the cafe opened and played its familiar jingle.

"Aunt Cass!" Hiro had a huge grin on his face. "I found him!

Aunt Cass looked a bit confused. "Found who?"

Hiro stepped back slightly, and a white american shepherd dog ran into the store and barked a greeting.

"Oh my gosh!" Aunt Cass dropped her cleaning rag. "Is that who I think it is?!"

Bolt barked and ran up to Aunt Cass. Aunt Cass immediately bent down and petted Bolt all over.

"It is! We've found him!" Aunt Cass laughed while Bolt licked her face.

"There's two more." Hiro said. A black cat and a hamster in a ball suddenly entered as well.

"Oh!" Aunt Cass was surprised by the newcomers. Bolt then walked over to them and sat down next to them. He barked happily.

"And he's got friends!" Aunt Cass said. "Wait right here, Bolt! You must be hungry!" Aunt Cass then ran into the back room.

"I've gotta tell everyone about this!" Hiro said as he took off his jacket and ran up the stairs.

"As I live and breathe." A voice from a shelf said. "Do my eyes deceive me? It's the dog himself!"

Bolt looked up and saw Mochi looking down at him from on top of the shelf.

"Mochi!" Bolt said happily.

Mochi then jumped down to ground. "Well, howdy 'do my fine fella? Long time no see."

"I know!" Bolt said happily. "It's great to see you again."

"Likewise." Mochi said. Then, his face turned slightly more serious. "Now, where have ya been all this time? Your human's been worried sick 'bout ya. Did you forget the promise ya made? Huh?"

"I know." Bolt looked at the ground in shame. "I got carried away with the acting, and I paid the price for it." Bolt then looked at Mochi with determined eyes. "But now, I've learned what it means to be a pet all over again! I've gotta get to Penny and show her that I'm okay!"

"There ya go." Mochi said while smiling again. "That's the Bolt I remember." He then looked over Bolt's shoulder. "So, who're these two?"

"I'm Mittens." Mittens introduced herself. "And this here in the ball is-"

"Rhino!" Rhino said dramatically. "The most be-awesomest hamster to ever roll the face of the earth!"

"Nice to meet ya Mittens. Rhino." Mochi greeted.

"Wow." Mittens said. "You're living with humans? You look so happy, too..."

Mochi then paused and walked over to Mittens.

"Uh..." Mittens backed up slightly when Mochi came in close to examine Mitten's face. "I-is something wrong?"

"Hmm..." Mochi then backed up and sat down. "Mittens, d'ya think the two of us could talk? One-on-one?"

"Eh?!" Mittens was startled by the sudden request. "Uh, s-sure? I guess?"

Mochi then walked to the kitchen. "Follow me."

Mittens looked over at Bolt, and Bolt had a calm expression on his face.

"Don't worry, Mittens." Bolt assured. "Mochi's a good cat. He won't hurt you."

Mittens didn't look fully convinced, but she followed Mochi into the kitchen.

Once the two cats were certain they were alone, Mochi sat down and looked at Mittens. "Alrighty, first things first. Yer an abandoned, aren't ya?"

"!" Mittens was shocked. "How did you-"

"I could tell from yer eyes." Mochi said with a cryptic smile. "Seems like you've gone through a lot with humans, and it pro'lly wasn't good."

"Y-yes, I do have a bad history with humans." Mittens said, amazed at Mochi's ability to read through her. "But, how did you know?"

"Y'know," Mochi said. "I was once an abandoned, too. Bad owners. Threw me out with the trash. I never felt more alone than that time." Mochi shook his head. "It was a real bad day for me."

"That..." Mittens said. "That sounds a lot like me. But, why did you go to another owner? Why did you trust humans again?"

"'Cause," Mochi replied. "Not all humans're bad people. When these here people took me in, I could tell immediately that they were good people. And ever since then, they've treated me like one of their own."

Mittens was amazed. All her life, she had thought that all humans were terrible beings who didn't care for their pets at all. And now, here was a prime example of humans caring for their pets as if they were part of the family!

"You shouldn't keep all that bitterness inside of ya." Mochi said. "Give them anotha' chance, let them take care of ya, and give them yer love and respect."

Mochi and Mittens looked out of the kitchen to see Aunt Cass give Bolt a bowl of dog food and rhino a stick of celery. Aunt Cass then looked at Mochi and Mittens.

"Come on, you two." Aunt cass said with a smile. "Let's get you something to eat."

Mochi smiled at Mittens and then walked out of the kitchen. Mittens sat in shock for a moment, then followed after Mochi.

* * *

Hiro got to his room and immediately turned his computer on. He then requested a video call with all of his friends and Penny. Soon, everyone but Penny appeared on screen.

"Guys! Big news!" Hiro announced.

"What's so important that you have to call at this hour?" Gogo asked.

"Gogo!" Honey Lemon scolded. "Let him speak. So, what's the big news, Hiro?"

"Didja fix your DNA locator?" Fred asked.

"Even better!" Hiro said. "I found Bolt! The actual Bolt!"

"What?!" Wasabi asked. A huge grin then appeared on his face. "That's great, little man!"

"Woohoo!" Honey Lemon cheered. "All that poster hanging wasn't for nothing!"

"Thanks a bunch, you guys!" Hiro said. "But now, I have to find a way to bring Bolt back to Penny."

"Not a lot of planes these days allow pets on board..." Gogo noted. "Maybe you could drive there?"

"That could take days." Hiro said, "I need to fly, but how?"

"Hmmm." Fred thought for a second. "Hiro, come by my house tomorrow morning. And bring Bolt with you. And anything you might need for, like, a few days stay. I think I may have a suggestion for you."

"Really? All right! You're the best, Fred!" Hiro said.

"No problem, buddy." Fred smiled. "See you tomorrow!" And with that, Fred logged off.

"Night Hiro. And great job!" Honey Lemon said before logging off.

"Go get 'em, little man!" Wasabi smiled before exiting.

"Don't mess up." Gogo said before closing her connection.

Hiro sat back into his chair. He was reeling from shock at the fact that he had found Bolt. Out of all the places Bolt could have been, he was in San Fransokyo.

Aunt Cass then walked up to Hiro's room with Bolt in her arms.

"I think he should be with you when you call Penny." Aunt Cass smiled.

Bolt jumped out of Aunt Cass' arms and walked over to Hiro. He then sat down and let out a happy bark.

Aunt Cass smiled at Hiro, and then she went back downstairs.

Hiro laughed. "Alright, then. Now, if only Penny would pick up-"

A ring from Hiro's computer indicated that Penny was online. Hiro quickly accepted the call and Penny appeared on the screen.

"Hiro?" Penny asked. "What's with the sudden call?"

"Penny, I found him." Hiro said in a calmly.

"Y-you did?" Penny asked. She looked rather unbelieving. "Then show me. Where is he?"

Hiro then turned to Bolt and patted his lap. Bolt jumped onto Hiro's lap and barked at the screen.

Penny gasped. She then looked Bolt over. His lightning bolt mark was gone, but Penny could tell, even through the screen, that this was, indeed, her lost friend.

"Bolt!" Penny shouted in happiness. "It's you! It's really you!"

Bolt barked happily to his human through the screen.

Penny then touched the screen. Tears of joy came pouring out of Penny's eyes. "Oh, Bolt. I've missed you so much." Penny then began sniffling and crying.

Bolt whined. It pained him to see his human in this condition.

"No, Bolt." Penny said. She smiled as best as she could. "I'm c-crying because I'm happy. I finally g-get to see you again." Penny then looked at Hiro. "I would come and get Bolt myself, but I have to film in a few days. Do you think…*hic*…Do you could bring Bolt to me?"

Hiro placed his hand where Penny's was on the screen. "Penny, I'm going to make sure that Bolt gets back to you safe and sound, even if it kills me."

"Don't say that!" Penny said. "What if that actually happens?"

"I'm just saying that I'm going to bring Bolt back to you guaranteed." Hiro said. "Don't worry about me."

Penny then grabbed a tissue and blew her nose. "Hiro, thank you. You found Bolt for me. I can't tell you how happy I am right now. Please bring Bolt home."

"You got it." Hiro said. "See you then."

"Uh-huh!" Penny nodded, and then she logged out.

Bolt looked up at Hiro with a happy face.

"Don't worry Bolt." Hiro said while petting his head. "I'll make sure you and Penny are together again."

Bolt barked happily, and then he went down to join Mittens and Rhino. Hiro smiled, and then he got up to get ready for bed. Bolt and Penny were too close to each other now, and Hiro was not going to let them be separated again. That was a promise.

* * *

Penny was beside herself with overwhelming joy. Mrs. Forrester then walked into Penny's room.

"What happened in here?" She asked.

"Mom." Penny tried to calm down. finally, she took a deep breath and spoke. "Hiro found him."

Mrs. Forrester's eyes grew wide, and then a huge smile appeared on her face. She then walked over to her daughter and gave her a huge hug.

"You see?" She said while Penny returned the hug. "I told you everything would be alright."

Suddenly, Penny's phone rang. Penny picked it up, and saw that it was her agent. Penny's face immediately dropped. Why was **he** calling right now? Penny picked up the call. "Hello?"

"Hey, Penny." Agent greeted. "Look, we had a sudden change in the schedule."

"What's the change?" asked Penny.

"Ah, well..." Agent sounded a bit embarrassed. "Upper management changed the airing day to tomorrow instead of the day after tomorrow. I know that it's a last-minute thing, but you'll be fine with it, right?"

"Well-"

"Great!" Agent said. "See you tomorrow!" He then hung up.

"..." Penny slowly lowered her phone. The new schedule change meant that it was guaranteed that she would have to film without Bolt. And Hiro had just found him! Penny looked a bit discouraged.

"Penny." Mrs. Forrester said. "Don't look so down. Bolt was found! Even if you can't be with him right now, you'll be with him soon!" She then hugged her child. "Hang in there. It'll be alright."

"Yeah." Penny said. "It'll be alright."

'I hope.' Penny thought to herself.

* * *

 **Alrighty. Bolt has been found! Finally! Hiro is soon going to bring Bolt back to Penny. I added that little scene between Mochi and Mittens since I think they would get along well (Mochi is supposed to sound like a country guy in this story, and I don't know why exactly I did that. For the LOLs, I guess). I hope you all enjoyed the chapter. If you liked it, please consider showing your support by leaving a comment. Thank you for reading, and until next time, peace!**


	7. Chapter 6: Reunion

**A/N: How is everybody doing? Good, I hope. I have a new chapter for y'all. Thanks for being patient. Things are starting to get interesting here, so I hope you're ready for it. I'm amazed at how many of y'all are reading this story from all over the world. I'm happy to see that people enjoy what I write (it feels good to have something you made be appreciated, right?) Thank you to everyone for the support, and I'll be sure to keep updating the story as much as I can. Once again, thanks for being here and enjoy the chapter!**

 **New Favorites and Followers:**

Alex the Stargazer

7opaz

* * *

 **Chapter 6: Reunion**

It was a bright and sunny day, and the green grass of Fred's lawn looked like sparkling pieces of emerald. Hiro was standing outside of Fred's mansion home with Bolt, Mittens, and Rhino next to him. Hiro had on his casual outfit consisting of a red shirt, blue hoodie, cargo capri shorts, and trainer shoes. Bolt, Mittens, and Rhino were all clean from their long trek after Aunt Cass had washed them down.

"Alright, I have everything, right?" Hiro quickly checked his backpack to make sure that he had everything with him. He saw his change of clothes for a few days, toiletries, and his passport. Hiro then checked his pocket for his phone and his wallet, both of which were present. Finally, Hiro looked at his right arm to make sure a new purple and red armband was in its place. Confident that he had everything he needed, Hiro put his backpack back on his back, picked up Rhino, and walked up the stairs to the front door. Bolt and Mittens followed.

 _Ding Dong_. Hiro rang the doorbell and waited. A few moments later, a blonde guy with a beanies and a huge grin popped his head out of the door.

"Hiro! My man!" Fred greeted happily as he opened the door all the way. "Come on in! We have a lot to talk about."

"Good to see you, Fred." Hiro said as he walked in. Bolt and Mittens followed after Hiro. Fred raised an eyebrow at the cat and hamster, but didn't say anything. The group then went to Fred's room. It was still as bizarre as Hiro remembered it, with various posters, action figures, and statues everywhere.

"Alrighty, sit down." Fred motioned to the couch. Hrio sat down and placed Rhino on the table in front of him. Bolt and Mittens sat on the ground next to Hiro.

"So, what's your suggestion for me, Fred?" Hiro asked.

"Whoa, man. Slow it down just a little bit." Fred said cooly. "Priorities. First off, is that Bolt the same dog that appears on the TV show?"

"Uh..." Hiro hesitated for a moment. "Didn't I already tell y-"

"Amazing! Awesome!" Fred jumped up excitedly and grabbed a piece of paper and an ink pad. Before Bolt could react, Fred placed Bolt's paw on the ink pad and then onto the paper. Bolt's pawprint was visible from the ink. "Oh, how I've been blessed!" Fred fell on his knees and raised the paper into the air with Bolt's print on it. "I've had the honor of getting an autograph from a celebrity!"

"Wow." Mittens commented. "He's an even bigger fan of Bolt than you, Rhino."

"Impossible!" Rhino said. "I am and always will be Bolt's numero uno fan!"

"Fred?" Hiro asked. "Can we try and focus here? We need to get Bolt back to Penny as soon as possible."

"Oh, uh, right." Fred quickly put the paper on his desk and rejoined the others. "SO! What's the full situation?"

"Well, I need to get Bolt to Penny." Hiro explained. "But unfortunately, I can't get a ticket for an airline that allows pets; it's just too expensive and time-consuming to go through all the background checks."

"Mmmm. That is a problem." Fred said after giving it some thought. Then, a massive smile appeared on Fred's face. "But lucky for you, uncle Freddie has got you covered!"

"Uh, you do?" Hiro asked. "Did you find an airline that I could go on?"

"Yes!" Fred said proudly. "You'll be flying on the one and only Air Force Fred all the way to Florida with no problems at all!"

Hiro raised an eyebrow. "Air Force Fred?"

"It's the name I gave my private jet!" Fred said while smiling. "Heathcliff is waiting outside right now for you to drive you to the airport, where you shall climb aboard the majestic machine and fly in glorious splendor!"

Hiro's brain tried to process everything he had just heard. _Private jet_. Fred was seriously going to let him fly on his private jet to Florida? Right now?!

"Dude, are you serious?!" Hiro finally asked.

"Dude, I'm totally serious! And my plane is special. It uses some of the latest technology in air travel and can go even faster than most commercial airplanes. You'll be able to get from here to Florida in just three hours!" Fred said with pride. "Anything for my good friend, Hiro! Besides, that's what friends are for!"

"Wow, thanks Fred! This is amazing!" Hiro said. He was excited at not having to deal with the long lines the airport usually offered.

Fred then sat back down. "Hey, Hiro. Do you think I could see the DNA locator? You've been cooped up for, like, a week working on that thing and didn't talk to anybody until recently."

"Oh, uh." Hiro sheepishly ran his hand through his hair. He knew how much Fred loved to see new tech. "It's...well, I… it's kinda..."

Hiro looked at Bolt, and Bolt looked back at him.

"I accidentally dropped it when I found Bolt, and I broke it." Hiro finally answered.

"Wait, so that means that..." Fred realized.

"Yeah." Hiro said. "No more DNA locator. Sorry."

"Oh, well, that's okay, I guess." Fred said while slumping into the couch. He looked at Hiro for a second, and then noticed something. "Hey, what's that thing on your arm?"

Hiro looked at what had piqued Fred's interest, and saw that it was his new armband.

"Oh, this?" Hiro asked. "It's something else that I've been working on for a while."

"Ooh!" Fred sat up again. "What is it? Knowing you, it's not just some fashion statement."

Hiro laughed. Fred could smell new tech like a bloodhound. "How about I show you?" Hiro then stood up and pressed a button on the armband. There was a small whirring, and then the armband began to glow slightly. The glow then began to spread across Hiro's arm, across his torso, and down his legs.

"Whoa..." Fred marvelled as he watched.

The glow had finally covered Hiro entirely, and then it faded to reveal Hiro now in his purple and black super suit.

"Amazing!" Fred said as he looked Hiro over. "You made this?! This is awesome, dude! Technology rocks!"

"Yeah, pretty cool, isn't it?" Hiro looked himself over. "I used some of the technology that I used when I made the microbots. I made the bots every smaller, and I can program them to form any shape that I want. The bots are stored in my armband, and when I need to put on my suit, I just push the button and they go over my body to form my suit. It's a better version, too. The old armor was meant just for riding on Baymax's back. But now, I added some extra parts so that it enhances my strength and has a new visor."

"Dude! When do I get mine!?" Fred was still in amazement at Hiro's latest invention.

"I'm working on it." Hiro said as he deactivated his armor. It reformed into an armband on Hiro's arm. "When I get back, I'll make sure to make one for all of you guys' armors."

"Dude! You're the best!" Fred exclaimed. Then, he remembered something important. "Oh yeah, did you tell Aunt Cass about this yet? Going to Florida?"

"Well, I told her about going to your house, but I haven't told her about the going to Florida part yet." Hiro then took out his phone and video called Aunt Cass.

"Hiro?" Aunt Cass appeared on the screen. "What's up, sweetie?"

"Aunt Cass, you know how I said I was going to Fred's house?" Hiro asked. "Well, he gave me a way to fly to Florida and bring Bolt back to Penny. I just wanted to let you know that I was going."

"Oh, is that why you took all that stuff with you?" Aunt Cass asked.

Hiro nodded. He was nervously waiting for Aunt Cass' response.

"Hmm..." Aunt Cass thought to herself for a moment. "Well, if I didn't know you any better, I wouldn't let you go. However, its break time and I think it would do us all some good if Bolt were back with Penny. Alright, Hiro. I'll let you go. Do you have everything you need for the trip?"

"Yeah!" Hiro said, excited at the answer. "Don't worry, Aunt Cass! I'll be back before you know it!"

"Okay, my little college man! Go and give your girlfriend her dog back!" She then winked at Hiro and abruptly ended the call.

"Wha-" Hiro was suddenly shocked by his Aunt's words. "Aunt Cass! Not you too!"

"Oooh. Hiro's got a girl?" Fred said with a grin.

"N-no! Why does everyone think this!?" Hiro's face threatened to turn red.

Bolt, Mittens, and Rhino all looked at Hiro with questioning looks.

"I'm just playing with you, man." Fred said while smiling. His phone suddenly buzzed. Fred looked at the screen and smiled. "Heathcliff's waiting outside for you. Go get 'em, tiger."

"Thanks, Fred. See you later." Hiro gathered up his stuff and picked up Rhino. Mittens and Bolt followed close behind Hiro. After a final wave goodbye, Hiro went out the front door.

"Greetings, Mr. Hamada." Heathcliff greeted. He was standing in front of a black car. "Master Frederick told me of your arrangement to fly to Florida."

"Good to see you, Heathcliff." Hiro greeted. "Thanks for giving me a ride."

"Of course." Heathcliff bowed. "Anything for one of Master Frederick's friends." Heathcliff then eyed Bolt and Mittens. Fred had already told him about the animals, so Heathcliff wasn't too surprised. After everybody had climbed into the car, Heathcliff began driving towards the airport.

"This is it!" Rhino said excitedly in Hiro's hands. "We're on our way!"

"You excited to see Penny again, Bolt?" Mittens asked.

"You know it." Bolt said happily. "Soon, I'll be back in Penny's arms and I'll never leave her again."

Mittens smiled.

'We're on our way, Penny.' Hiro thought to himself. 'Hold on just a little bit longer.'

* * *

"Okay people, let's move it to stage seven and do it for real." Mindy ordered. The last practice right before the shoot had just concluded. Penny had to act out with the Bolt look-alike. While the knowledge of Bolt being found had helped her a bit, the fact that she still had to film without him was painful.

"I miss him." Penny said sadly as embraced her mother.

"I know, honey." Mrs. Forrester said. "But chin up! Soon, Bolt will be back and you'll be able to have as much time together as you used to. Upper management said that this is the last episode of the season, so you'll have a long break from filming to spend with Bolt."

"That's good." Penny said. "I just want him to be here."

Mrs. Forrester's phone suddenly rang. She briefly let go of Penny and took it out of her pocket. Her eyes widened slightly. "It's Ms. Cassie!" She accepted the call.

'Ms. Cassie?' Penny wondered.

"Hey, Cassie. What's happened?" She listened closely. A smile then appeared on her face. "Really? That's great! I'll be sure to tell her. No problem. See you later!" Mrs. Forrester hung up the call and beamed at her daughter.

"What did she say?" Asked Penny.

"She said that Hiro is on the way to Florida right now!" Mrs. Forrester announced. "He'll be here in a few hours, and he's bringing Bolt with him!"

"Hiro's coming." Penny said to herself. She already knew that Hiro was going to come soon, but why did her heart feel like soaring when she heard that Hiro was coming again? A small blush appeared on her face.

"Hm? Thinking about your boyfriend again?" Mrs. Forrester noticed Penny's blush. "Are you going to tell him when he gets here?"

"Mom!" Penny's face was more pink than before.

"Penny, there you are!" Agent suddenly interrupted the conversation. "Why are you still here? They need you in makeup! Pronto!"

Penny suddenly realized that she was soon going to be late for makeup and costuming for the shooting later that day. Seeing Bolt and Hiro again was going to be great, but she had other things to worry about first.

"Sorry!" Penny then gave her mother one last hug. "See you later, mom."

"Take care, sweetie." Mrs. Forrester said. "Knock 'em dead!"

Penny waved behind her as she followed her agent.

* * *

It was an interesting experience for Hiro at the airport. Instead of going through the entrance most normal people would use, Heathcliff drove through a gate that lead to the area where there were several small planes. There were many different planes, but one particular plane stood out from the others.

'Fred said that I'm going to be flying in style. Is this what he meant?' Hiro looked at the plane. It was bright red with a black kaiju pattern on the right side of the fuselage. On the left side of the plane, a picture of Fred's super suit could be seen breathing fire. When placed next to all the other private jets, which were mostly modest in terms of color and livery, Fred's plane stuck out like a sore thumb.

"We have arrived." Heathcliff informed as he opened the door to the car. "Please board when you are ready."

"Thanks." Hiro said as he picked up Rhino and walked to the plane, which was lowering its door and revealing a staircase into the plane. Bolt and Mittens followed Hiro up the stairs.

"Wow." Hiro said as he looked around the plane's interior. It was very similar in look to Fred's room. There was a large flat-screen TV with a mini fridge next to it, a bed for sleeping in, a bathroom in the back with a shower, and a few chairs just to sit in and enjoy the flight. There were also several action figures and comic books on some shelves. All of the shelves had a sign that said, "Fred, do not touch! ~Fred."

"We shall be leaving shortly." Heathcliff said as he walked to the cockpit with another man, probably Fred's private pilot.

"Thanks, Heathcliff." Hiro said as he sat in a chair and tried to get comfortable. Mittens, Rhino, and Bolt sat on the ground next to Hiro.

"This is so awesome!" Rhino said excitedly as he rolled in circles. "We get to fly!"

"I've never flown before." Mittens said nervously. "Is it safe?"

The plane's door rose up and closed.

"Don't worry." Bolt assured. "I've flown a few times in my life, and it was perfectly safe!"

Mittens nodded, but still looked nervous.

Hiro felt the plane suddenly lurch as it started taxiing towards the runway. This was it. They were finally going to Florida to see Penny. Hiro's heart sang in joy at the thought of seeing his longtime friend again after so long.

"Don't worry, Penny." Hiro said to himself. "We'll be there soon."

* * *

"No, no, no!" The director fumed. "I said that there were supposed to be six torches, not ten!"

There was quite a bit of bustle going on in sound stage seven. Props were being set up, actors were being prepared for filming, and the director was already complaining about something.

"It has to be just as I told you! Do you want to keep your job, or what!?" The director was busy yelling at the stage crew while Mindy stood a little ways off. She shook her head and then walked over to the makeup room.

"Does anybody have contour number 4?" A makeup artist asked as she worked on Dr. Forrester's face.

"I need an eye contact colored green 17!" Another person said as he worked on Dr. Calico.

Mindy walked past rows and rows of actors being prepared until she found who she was looking for.

"Hey there, kid." Mindy greeted Penny as she was being looked at by a staff member. "You doing okay?"

"Yeah." Penny said while trying to stay still. The staff member put some dark color on Penny's face to imitate several days of imprisonment. "I'm okay."

"Good, cause we're going to need you to be in top-shape for today." Mindy said while looking through her phone. "I trust that nothing out of the ordinary will happen today? Especially anything involving Bolt?"

"I'll do my best, ma'am." Penny said. There was a slight tinge of sadness in Penny's voice, but it was overlooked.

"That's a good girl." Mindy said while smiling slightly. "I'll see you in a bit, alright?"

Mindy then walked out of the makeup room and prepared to head back to the networking station.

"What I'm saying, sir, is that today might not be a good day to film!" A staff member was talking with the director.

"?" Mindy paused to listen.

"What do you mean, 'today isn't a good day to film?!'" The director snapped. "We're filming today because today is the only day we can film! If we don't film today, we'll be behind schedule! And I don't think I need to remind you that our ratings have dropped far enough already!"

"But, sir!" The staff member protested. "The fire suppression system is offline today while maintenance checks out the system! And we're using actual fire in today's shooting. Even if it seems unlikely, if the stage were to catch fire, then we wouldn't be able to put it out!

"It'll be fine!" The director argued. "How many times have we filmed in this area and had a fire break out. Huh?! Tell me!"

"None, sir." The staff member replied. "But all those other times the fire suppression system was onli-"

"Blah, blah, blah!" The director interrupted while covering his ears. "I don't want to hear it! You're going to make sure that everything goes according to schedule, and you're gonna like it! End of line!" The director then stormed off leaving a mute staff member.

Mindy sighed and shook her head at what she had just witnessed. The director could really be a bit of a bonehead sometimes, but he was right about one thing. Sparkling Core Studios was known for its amazing track recording when it came to fires. In the many years of filmmaking, not one fire had broken out. Still, something didn't sit quite well with Mindy. She pushed it off to the side of her thoughts and tried not to think about it. It was the last episode, and she was going to make sure it didn't end on a sour note.

"Incoming!" A staff member motioned for several helicopter props to be attached to the ceiling.

Mindy decided that now was a good time to go back to the networking station. Right now, she was in the way of preparation.

* * *

After a seemingly short three hours of flight, A bright red plane touched down in the sunny afternoon of Florida.

"Ooooh, man." Mittens groaned as the plane lurched to a stop. "I'm glad that I didn't eat anything. Otherwise, there would have been a lotta hairballs around here. And I don't mean that in a fun way."

"We're here!" Rhino said excitedly. "We're in Bolt's home territory!"

"Oh, man!" Bolt said happily. "I almost back to Penny!"

"Are you guys not sick from that whole ordeal?" Mittens asked while trying not to retch. "I felt light-headed during the whole trip."

"What are you talking about, cat?" Rhino said while sticking his chest out. "I had a blast!"

"I've been on planes before." Bolt said. "It was fine for me, at least."

Mittens groaned. "I envy you and your immunity to air sickness."

Hiro got out of his seat and checked to make sure that he had everything with him. Heathcliff then walked out of the cockpit and opened the door to the plane.

"We are now going to depart for Sparkling Core Studios." Heathcliff said. "The car is waiting for us." He then descended the stairs.

Hiro climbed down the stairs of the plane and followed Heathcliff to a black car that looked suspiciously like the one Hiro rode in earlier.

Once the group had climbed into the car, they sped off to Penny's studio.

'This is it.' Hiro thought to himself, heart racing. 'You're going to see Penny in person for the first time since...uh...a long time! Don't mess this up, Hiro.'

"I'm coming, Penny!" Bolt was so excited, he could hardly sit still.

"Calm down there, Bolt." Mittens said. "I know you're excited, but try and keep it together, will you?"

"I'm finally going to meet Penny in person!" Rhino couldn't seem to contain his excitement either. "This is the best day ever!"

Mittens sighed. "Why are males always so excited about everything?"

* * *

"Positions, everybody." The director called out.

"Okay, hold still for me, sweetie." A staff member was putting a harness on Penny and tied her up with rope. The harness was connected to a cable hanging from the ceiling, and it gave the impression that Penny was hanging by the rope. After the staff member finished, the cable pulled Penny up.

"Fifteen, take one. Mark." A staff member said while clapping the clap board. The room was dimly lit, and there were several large statues with fire in their mouths.

"And, action!" Called the director.

A light turned on to reveal Dr. Forrester strapped to a chair that was flanked by two guards. A ding from behind him indicated that the elevator doors had opened. Dr. Calico strolled out with his two cats.

"Ah! Professor, I'd like to thank you for granting us access to that labyrinthian mind of yours." Calico casually leaned on the back of Dr. Forrester's chair.

"You know I'd never do such a thing." Dr. Forrester said in a low voice.

"Unless it was the only way to save your little girl's life!" Calico tilted the chair backwards to give Dr. Forrester a full view of Penny hanging from the ceiling.

"Penny!" Dr Forrester cried.

"Daddy!" Penny looked around frantically. "Bolt! Here, Bolt!"

Calico sneered. "Your dog is nowhere near-"

The sound of the elevator made Calico pause mid-sentence. He turned around to see Bolt suddenly burst through the doors of the elevator and bark angrily.

"Get. That. Dog!" Calico ordered.

The two guards that were flanking Dr. Forrester turned to Bolt and activated their taser gloves. The Bolt look-alike suddenly became afraid and started backing up.

"Go. Go. Go." A staff member tried to urge the dog forward.

"It's okay, boy. Come here." The padded man tried to grab the dog, but it back up too far and fell off of the platform, knocking over several torches in the process. The cans of lighter fluid sprayed their flammable contents all over the stage, and soon, a hungry fire began to spread.

"Fire. Fire, fire! There's fire!" A staff member shouted. A fire there was, indeed. The flames were spreading extremely quickly, and soon, most of the props were burning.

"We need to get out of here!" One staff member shouted. "Everyone stay calm and follow the exit pa-"

"RUN!" The director shouted. "Run or you'll DIE!" He then ran for the exit, tripping over several people on the way.

That sent everyone into full-on panic mode. Everyone raced for the exit without checking if everyone was present. Everyone managed to get to the exit...except for one person.

"Help! Please, help!" Penny cried as she tried to release herself from her straps. Unfortunately, her cries for help went unnoticed as everyone was trying to save their own skin.

The fire grew rapidly, and soon, smoke and heat filled the sound stage to almost unbearable levels.

* * *

"No, I told you!" Hiro argued with the entrance guard. "I'm here to see Penny Forrester! I know her personally, and I need to see her right now! It's an emergency!"

Hiro, Bolt, Mittens, and Rhino had arrived at Sparkling Core Studios. The trip to the studio was relatively uneventful. Heathcliff had driven off to refill the gas tank and promised to return later. After being denied entry, Hiro had started arguing with the stubborn entrance guard.

"Look, kid." The guard replied flatly. "Unauthorized personnel are not allowed on the studio grounds. If you want to purchase a guest pass, you'll need to go to the front office. Even then, you'll need to wait until visitor hours before we can let you in."

Hiro continued to argue with the guard while Bolt, Mittens, and Rhino stayed nearby.

"This human is very irritating." Rhino grumbled. "Can I take him out?"

"I would love to say yes," Bolt said while glowering at the guard. "But I don't think that charging in without authorization is going to do us any favors."

"Well, that stinks." Mittens said. "Because I don't think we're going to get in this way anytime soon the way things are going right now."

"Why can't I get into the studio?!" Hiro asked in an exasperated tone.

"I just told you, kid." The guard said while pinching the bridge of his nose. "We're in the middle of a shoot right now, and guests are not allowed to enter the premises until the shoot has concluded."

"I'm gonna go right up to this guy's face," Rhino growled while balling his fists. "And then I'm gonna rip the flesh right off of his-"

"Shh!" Bolt suddenly shushed. He crouched low, as if he felt something.

"What is it?" Mittens asked.

"Mittens, be quiet." Bolt said as he stayed still.

"Bolt, I was just-"

"No, seriously." Bolt said. "Be quiet." His ear suddenly twitched.

"Do you hear something?" Mittens asked quietly.

"Not something." Bolt said. "Someone." He then raised his ear, and then a worried expression appeared on his face. "Penny."

 _RIIIIIIIIING!_ Right as Bolt said that, the fire bell went off. The smell of smoke suddenly became evident. Hiro and the guard stopped their arguing. Hiro, Bolt, Mittens, and Rhino looked above the studio and saw black clouds of smoke suddenly start billowing out of a sound studio. Hiro's heart nearly stopped.

"Penny!" Bolt suddenly ran under the entrance bar and started running towards the fire.

"Bolt! What happened to not charging in without authorization!?" Mittens and Rhino started running after Bolt.

"Hey! Wait up!" Hiro started running after the trio.

"Hey, kid! Come back!" The guard yelled. "It's not safe!"

His words fell on deaf ears as Hiro ran towards the fire, fearing the worst.

Right as Hiro, Bolt, Mittens, and Rhino made it to the sound stage entrance, several fire trucks rolled up and firefighters jumped out to try and combat the growing blaze.

Hiro looked around for Penny. "Penny! Are you here?!"

Bolt looked around for his person. "Penny!" He had a very bad feeling in his gut.

"Hiro?!" Hiro turned around, and there was Mrs. Forrester, looking extremely afraid.

"Mrs. Susan!" Hiro ran over and placed his hands on Mrs. Forrester's shoulders. "What happened?! Where's Penny?!"

"The stage caught fire during shooting!" Mrs. Forrester sounded ready to go insane. "And they can't find Penny anywhere!"

"Oh no." Hiro said as he continued to look around. "Hey! Has anyone seen Penny Forrester anywhere?!"

Bolt was next to Hiro and barking, hoping that Penny would hear him.

A small group of people suddenly came out of the stage entrance, coughing heavily. Hiro then ran over to them.

"Have any of you guys seen Penny?!" Hiro asked while trying to stay calm. It was rather difficult as a million possible scenarios ran through Hiro's head, most of which weren't very happy thoughts.

One guy coughed. He tried to say something, and then coughed again. Hiro then ran over to him and kneeled next to him. Bolt was next to him, hoping to hear an answer. Mittens and Rhino joined shortly after.

"I-I saw her..." The man managed to wheeze out.

"You did?!" Hiro asked. "Where?!"

The man coughed one more time, and then slowly lifted an ash-covered finger. When Hiro realized where he was pointing, he wanted to faint. He pointed directly to the burning building.

"No..." Hiro said, in shock of what he had just learned. Suddenly, Hiro fell on his knees while clutching his head as some old memories that Hiro had tried to forget resurfaced. _A fire. Someone running into the blaze. A massive explosion._ "No, NO!" Hiro suddenly shouted as he jumped back on his feet and activated his armband. His armor formed around his body in seconds.

"Bolt!" Hiro shouted. "Come on!" Hiro then ran towards the blazing sound stage entrance without a second thought.

"Come on!" Bolt said as he began to run to the stage entrance. Rhino and Mittens followed as fast as they could. "Just make sure I get inside that building."

Someone suddenly tripped over Bolt and made him stumble.

"Bolt?!" Agent looked behind him in surprise to see the white shepherd dog continue running to the stage entrance.

Hiro managed to make it into the sound stage area, but as soon as he ran in, an air vent suddenly threatened to fall and block the entrance.

"Coming through!" Rhino said as he managed to roll his ball under the air vent and prevent it from falling all the way. Cracks started to form on Rhino's ball. "It's a good day to die!"

"Not on my watch, rodent!" Mittens said while popping open the plastic ball and grabbing Rhino. Bolt suddenly slid under the air vent and made it in just in time. Rhino's plastic ball finally gave way and the air vent fell to the ground, blocking the entrance. Mittens and Rhino looked worried, not knowing what happened to Bolt.

* * *

Hiro and Bolt looked behind them to see several pieces of debris fall over the exit. The entrance was completely blocked. They would have to find another way out.

"Come on, Bolt!" Hiro said as he ran under several burning props. Bolt followed closely behind while barking for Penny to hear.

Penny stumbled as she tried to look for a way out. She had been exposed to the heat and smoke for a while now, and she was beginning to grow weak from asphyxiation. She coughed hoarsely as she tried to navigate the fire.

Bolt and Hiro weren't faring much better. Hiro was shoving several pieces of debris aside to clear a walking path while Bolt continued to bark. Hiro was starting to get dizzy from the smoke and heat, but he HAD to keep looking for Penny. He wasn't about to let another one of his loved ones perish by flame.

"Penny!" Hiro called out as Bolt barked again. "Where are you!?"

Penny coughed again. She thought she heard someone calling her name. Her mind must have been starting to get fuzzy from the fire.

"Penny!" The voice yelled again. Penny was sure she heard it clearly. Then she heard a bark. Her eyes widened. It came from behind her! She turned around, and her heart suddenly leaped for joy. There, a small distance away, was Hiro and Bolt!

"Hiro! Bolt!" Penny called as she began running towards them.

"Penny!" Hiro called back as he and Bolt began running towards her.

The two parties dodged burning debris and ducked under hanging props to run to each other. Bolt reached Penny first, and the two embraced in the tightest hug they could muster.

"I knew you'd come back." Penny said softly as Bolt nuzzled his head against her. Penny started to shed a few tears, and then she looked up.

"Hey." Hiro said. He was wearing some kind of armor. Just when Penny thought Hiro couldn't get any better. She then temporarily let go of Bolt and gave Hiro a massive hug, which he gladly returned.

"You brought him back to me." Penny whispered as a few tears escaped from her eyes. "Thank you."

Hiro patted her back, and then broke the embrace. "Let's get you out of here."

Penny nodded, and then she remembered something. "Hiro. Your armor. Why does it look so familia-"

"Great story for another time." Hiro interrupted. "But we really need to get out of here. I don't know how much longer until the building-"

A creak from above the group made them look up. A helicopter prop was hanging from the ceiling, and it was hanging by a few cables that looked ready to give way.

"Move!" Hiro said as he grabbed Penny's hand and started to run. Bolt followed close behind.

The helicopter suddenly snapped its last cable and fell to the ground, which created a blast wave of fire and hurled debris everywhere. It caught up with the fleeing trio and knocked them off of their feet.

"Ow." Hiro said as he stood back up. He looked around and saw Bolt getting on his feet as well. But where was Penny?

"Ah!" Penny cried.

Hiro whirled around, and what he saw made his stomach jackknife. Penny was on the ground, and her foot was trapped under a piece of debris. It wasn't crushing her foot from what Hiro could tell, but it was preventing her from moving. Hiro then looked up and saw another helicopter that looked ready to fall. Hiro didn't think twice and ran over to Penny, with Bolt barking in alarm some distance away.

"Rrrrrrrghhhh..." Hiro strained as he tried to lift the debris and free Penny's foot. Another cable holding the helicopter up snapped.

"Hiro!" Penny cried. "Don't worry about me! Get out of here while you can!"

"Don't be stupid!" Hiro said as he continued to try and lift the debris. His suit's motors groaned at the strain they were experiencing. "I'm not going to leave you here! We've come too far for that!"

Bolt barked as another few cables on the helicopter snapped. Only a few remained.

"RrraaaAAHHHH!" Hiro lifted as hard as he could, and a small gap just barely side enough for Penny's foot appeared. Penny then slipped her foot out and ran to join Bolt.

"Hiro, come on!" Penny yelled.

Hiro had just dropped the debris when the helicopter finally broke free and fell. Hiro looked up just in time to see the helicopter falling towards him. The helicopter landed, and it sent another blast wave of fire and debris that threw Hiro back quite some distance. Hiro was flung into a pile of burning props and then stopped moving. Hiro's suit was damaged from the impact, and the suit's nanites agitatedly retreated into Hiro's armband.

"HIRO!" Penny screeched as she ran over to her fallen friend. Bolt followed her closely behind. Penny reached Hiro and rolled him over. Penny's breathing became rapid as she looked Hiro over. Hiro was badly burned in several places, and his left arm was bent at a funny angle. On top of it all, he was unconscious.

"Hiro! No! Don't do this to me!" Penny cried as she shook Hiro's shoulders. "Why would you go and do that?! I told you to go without me!" Penny then started sobbing into Hiro's chest. Her heart couldn't bear to see her friend like this.

Bolt suddenly barked. Penny looked at him, and then remembered the situation. They needed to get out of the stage, fast. But how? Penny was trying to stand up while holding Hiro, but she could barely walk. Bolt looked at his person worriedly. Penny looked around for anything to help. She then spotted a piece of rope with a stick attached to one end of it. She then got an idea.

"Bolt." Penny said while holding out the rope. "Zoom-zoom."

Bolt understood immediately and grabbed the stick in his mouth while guiding Penny through the burning maze. Penny was stumbling from the extra weight she was carrying, but she wasn't about to let Hiro die from saving her. Hiro's quote suddenly replayed in her mind.

 _I'm going to make sure that Bolt gets back to you safe and sound, even if it kills me._

Penny nearly sobbed out loud. 'Please.' She thought as she looked at Hiro's unconscious face. 'Don't follow through with that promise. I need you here, Hiro. Don't go now. You can't go now!'

Bolt pulled Penny along as he continued to look for an exit. If they didn't get out soon, they would all be goners. Bolt looked around desperately, and then saw an air vent. That was it! That was the way out! Bolt pulled Penny over to the vent, but when they got right in front of it, Penny collapsed and dropped Hiro.

Bolt barked as he knocked the grate off of the vent and climbed in, but then he looked behind him to see Penny on the verge of losing consciousness. He walked back to his human and whined sadly.

"Bolt." Penny said weakly. She coughed several times. Extended smoke inhalation had finally taken its toll. "Bolt, just go on out."

Bolt sat down next to his human and whimpered.

"It'll be okay." Penny assured as she stroked Bolt's snout. "You're my good boy. I love you."

Bolt watched as Penny slowly turned to look at Hiro's face. She slowly reached out and grabbed Hiro's hand in her own.

"Thank you for everything, Hiro." Penny wheezed. "I love you, too. You were a great friend." As Penny said those words, she lost consciousness while still holding Hiro's hand.

Bolt watched the entire event. Why hadn't he seen it? Hiro was just as important to Penny as he was. In fact, Hiro might have been even more important. Bolt looked at where their hands met, and then walked over and lay down next to the union. He lay down and silently hoped for things to get better.

"Penny. Hiro." Bolt said to himself. "We're going to be alright. I know we will."

* * *

"Have you seen my daughter?" Mrs. Forrester frantically asked around. It had been a while since she had last seen Penny or Hiro. "Has anyone seen my baby?! Has anyone seen her friend, even?!"

A cough caught Mrs. Forrester's attention. She looked to see an ash-covered man waving at her weakly.

"Have you seen them?" Mrs. Forrester asked. She kneeled next to the man. "Have you seen any of them?" Mittens and Rhino were a small distance away, listening to the conversation.

"Your daughter." The man coughed violently. He continued in his wheezing voice. "She-we saw her still hanging from the ceiling when we evacuated. And the messy-haired boy. He ran in to try and find her."

Mrs. Forrester gasped. Penny was still in the building for all she knew, and Hiro was in there with her! But why hadn't anyone gone in to save them yet?

"Are all people accounted for?" A staff member called. "We're still missing one person."

"Well, if they've been missing for this long since the fire started, they're probably dead by now." The director said as he tried to brush soot off of his jacket.

At that, Mrs. Forrester broke down completely and starting sobbing hysterically. Her baby was...gone? It couldn't be! She was so young! She had her entire life ahead of her! And Hiro was in there with her! What was she going to tell Cassie?

"Ma'am, I'm sorry that this had to happen." A firefighter tried to offer his condolences.

Mindy watched from a small distance away. She then shook her head at what had just happened. Maybe the staff member from earlier was right. Maybe they shouldn't have filmed today. Sure, it would have cost some rating points, but some good people could have lost their lives. What was a few rating points compared to a human life?

More fire trucks came into the studio lot and joined the battle against the fire.

"?" Bolt heard the fire trucks' sirens coming from the vent. He looked up. He then experimentally yipped into the vent. A small echo was heard.

Bolt then yipped a little louder into the vent. A louder echo resounded. Bolt then remembered something Rhino had done on the journey to San Fransokyo. He got up from between Hiro and Penny, and then he crouched. He readied his front paw, and then his back. Taking in as much air as he could in the smoky atmosphere, Bolt reared back and then unleashed a thunderous bark.

Everyone working outside the studio paused.

"Hey, did you hear that?" One ambulance worker asked.

"Yeah." A firefighter replied. "What is that?"

"Quiet. Everyone be quiet." Another firefighter ordered. After a short amount of time, the bark could be heard again. It clearly came from one of the air vents.

"It's the superbark!" Rhino said excitedly as he clutched onto Mitten's arm and whooped.

"It's coming from over there!" The lead firman pointed to a door that lead into the stage area.

"Go, go, go!" Another fireman started running to the door.

"Come on, let's go!" A group of firemen ran towards the door as quickly as they could.

Bolt barked for the third time, and then he collapsed from exhaustion. A door could barely be heard being busted down, and fuzzy voices could be heard.

* * *

"All right, we got an RT coming through, people. Make a hole!"

Penny came to on an rolling bed that was headed for an ambulance. She coughed as she realized she had a breathing mask on her face. She then looked over slightly to the right to see another fireman carrying an unconscious soot-covered dog.

"Bolt." Penny said weakly. She then looked to the left and saw another rolling bed. It's occupant had messy black hair and also had a breathing mask on his face. "Hiro." Penny tried to reach out to Hiro, but her body refused to respond.

"I gotta get through. Sweetie!" Penny looked to see her mother pushing through the crowd. "You're okay. You gotta be okay. You're gonna be just fine"

"She's stable, but we're gonna take her to the hospital just to be safe." The ambulance crew brought Penny into the ambulance, and the fireman placed Bolt on Penny's stomach.

Penny looked at Hiro and saw him being loaded into another ambulance.

"I'm so sorry this happened." Mrs. Forrester looked relieved that her child was safe.

"I can't imagine what you must be feeling. No mother should ever have to go  
through something like this," Agent climbed into the ambulance and looked at Penny. "But I promise you we're going to make this work for us. I'm talking cover stories, production deals, executive producer credit. This is so great!"

Agent was suddenly thrown roughly out of the ambulance and fell on the asphalt. His phone shattered from impact.

"We quit." Mrs. Forrester firmly declared.

"No, no! Wait!" Agent tried to pick up the pieces of his phone. "Let's not make any rash decisions. Let's put a pin in it."

Mrs. Forrester slammed the door of the ambulance shut, and they began to drive to the nearest hospital.

'Hiro.' Penny thought to herself as she pat Bolt on the head. She didn't remember the trip to the hospital. All she remembered was seeing Bolt and being happy, and then passing out again.

When Penny came to, she was being carted down a hallway. Bolt was no longer on her lap. She looked around to see several people in white clothes pushing her along.

"Don't worry." One person noticed Penny had awoken. "We had to move your dog somewhere else to make sure he's alright. We're going to do your examination now."

Penny nodded weakly. A pair of doors at the end of the hallway opened to reveal a room filled with all sorts of medical tools and equipment. A doctor came in and hooked Penny up to an IV drip and a heart rate monitor.

"Don't be afraid." The doctor did his best to smile behind his mask. "You're in good hands. It'll be just fine from here on out."

That was the last thing Penny remembered before losing consciousness once more.

* * *

 **And that's all for now! We'll be looking at what happens to Penny and Hiro in the hospital next. Hiro has bad luck with fire, doesn't he? I hope y'all enjoyed the chapter. If you enjoyed it and want to see more, please consider leaving a comment to show your support for the story. I'll make sure not to keep you waiting for too long. Until next time, peace!**


	8. Chapter 7: Revelation

**A/N: Hello, again! I'll keep this short so we can move along. I'm back with a new chapter! There was a bunch of stuff going on recently, so I didn't have a lot of time to write. But now, I'm back and I hope you're ready for a new chapter. Enjoy!**

 **New Favorites/Follows:**

TrimusicaDrag00n90

Monkeinguin

jordandragons

 **Thank you for the support!**

* * *

 **Chapter 7: Revelation**

Penny opened her eyes. She was still very sore all over her body, but she was definitely recovering. She then looked around her. Penny was currently standing in a large space that was pure white. The white of her surroundings didn't blind her, but it was a very bizarre place nonetheless.

"Hello?" Penny called into the emptiness. "Can anybody hear me?! Bolt! Hiro! Where are you guys?!"

"Don't worry." A voice said from behind Penny. "They're safe. And more importantly, you're safe."

Penny immediately whipped around to see a middle-aged man wearing a cowboy hat, a red and black checkered shirt, worn-out jeans, and hiking boots.

"You-You're" Penny stammered. This man was a spitting image of his picture. A picture in the Forrester family album. Tears began to well up in Penny's eyes. "Daddy?"

"Hello, Penny." Penny's father gave a warm smile.

"Dad!" Penny ran over to her father and tackled him in a bear hug. She then began sobbing into his chest as Mr. Forrester hugged his daughter tightly and gently shushed her.

"It's good to see you again." Mr. Forrester said after Penny finally released him.

Penny sniffled and looked up at her father. "S-so this is w-what you're l-like? As a-a real p-person?"

Mr Forrester reached out his hand and gently rubbed Penny's head. "You've grown so much, Penny. I'm so proud of you. Has your mother been doing okay?"

"Y-yeah." Penny nodded. "B-but she m-misses y-you. Me inc-cluded."

Mr. Forrester's smile dropped ever so slightly. "I know. I really wish that I could be with you right now in person, but my time to leave already came. I know that it doesn't seem fair, but that's just how life works."

Penny nodded while looking down. She sniffled again. She then felt a hand on her shoulder.

"I know that this is the first time we've been together for a while, but our time here is short." Mr. Forrester brought his daughter's chin up to make Penny look at him. "Why don't you tell me what happened to you recently?"

Penny hesitated, but then told her father about everything: meeting Bolt, meeting Hiro, moving to Florida, losing Bolt, Hiro helping Penny find Bolt, and then the fire.

After hearing everything, Mr. Forrester then processed it in his head. He then looked at Penny.

"Sounds like Bolt did you some big emotional favors." He commented. "And it sounds like this Hiro is someone special."

Penny nodded. "They've both helped me so much."

"And this fire." Mr. Forrester's face changed to a frown. "Are you okay? How badly were you hurt?"

"I was exposed to a lot of smoke." Penny said. "But Hiro and Bolt helped me get out safely."

Mr. Forrester smiled again. "Sounds like Hiro is very close to you."

Penny nodded. "Mom said that, too."

Mr. Forrester then cleared his throat. "You know, sweetheart. Your mother and I met in a strange way that sounds kind of like you and Hiro."

Penny blushed. "W-what?"

"It was at a housewarming party." Mr. Forrester explained. "I was about to start college and my family had just moved to California from Nevada. One of my mom's friends introduced me to her daughter. Can you guess who it was?"

"Mom?" Penny asked.

Mr. Forrester nodded. "We kept in touch for several years, but we really came together when I went to visit her at her college. Your mom was real popular when she was in school, you know that?"

Penny's mouth dropped open a little bit. Her mom was a popular person in college?

"Well, one day she held a party at her apartment." Mr. Forrester continued. "It was pretty crazy with music, lights, and alcohol even though it was illegal. I was hanging around your mother and trying to get to know her better. But, someone must have not been paying attention because we all smelled something burning. There was a fire in the apartment, and we hadn't noticed it because we were having too much fun."

Penny's eyes widened. She hadn't heard anything like this before!

"We all managed to get out safely, but then the police came up to us and questioned us. Long story short, your mother was arrested for hosting a party with alcoholic beverages. She herself didn't have anything to do with the alcohol, but everybody just pointed the blame to her with no evidence." Mr. Forrester's mouth tightened as he remembered the event. "Her hearing was the next day. I was there as a witness. The jury was going to imprison her for a pretty long time, but then I stepped up."

"W-what did you do?" Penny asked.

"I went up there and gave the entire story from start to finish." Mr. Forrester said. "I told them that your mother was innocent, and that if they were going to imprison her for something she had no part in, they were going to have to get through me first."

Penny gasped. Her father must have been brave to step up like that in front of everybody!

"That shocked everybody so much that no one knew what to do next." Mr. Forrester continued. "The judge then reconsidered the sentence, and then he decided that they would reduce the imprisonment sentence to just one week because my testimony was so powerful and because there was no concrete evidence that she did anything wrong. So for that entire week, I visited your mother in prison and we talked with each other."

Penny's mind was reeling. She hadn't realized how crazy the events that brought her parents together were!

"After she was released, Your mother and I began dating." Mr. Forrester then closed his eyes and smiled. "We got married after college let out, and then we had you."

"M-me?" Penny asked.

"Yep." Mr. Forrester replied. "Your mother was so happy when you came 'round. I can still remember the day we brought you home." His face suddenly dropped. "But then, the day came when I departed. When I came to, I couldn't tell where I was, but I somehow knew that I was safe." He then turned to his daughter. "You speak of Hiro like he's special to you. If you truly think that's true, then don't let him escape. Spend time with him and get to know him better, because one day, you might not be able to."

Penny nodded. Then, her cheeks flushed pink. "Wait, are you saying that me and Hiro should-"

"I'm not saying explicitly that you should, but if that's what the both of you want, then by all means, go for it." Mr. Forrester grinned. "I'd like to see some grandkids, though."

"DAAAD!" Penny covered her face as she blushed crimson red. "Not you too!"

Mr. Forrester laughed, a hearty laugh that could make anyone smile. "Just teasing you. But, I think that our time is just about up."

Penny then began to float. She was wondering what was happening, then she saw that she was slowly floating away from her father.

"Dad!" She reached out her hand, and Mr. Forrester grabbed it.

"When you see your mother, tell her I still love her." Mr. Forrester said while smiling. "Cherish your time with Hiro, and I'll see you all again when your time comes, alright? Promise me."

"Dad!" Penny cried as her grip on his hand started slipping. "I promise! I'll see you again!"

Mr. Forrester nodded and smiled as Penny finally let go of his hand and floated away. Penny watched as her father became smaller and smaller until he was out of sight. Then, everything faded to black.

* * *

Penny gasped as she opened her eyes. She quickly scanned her surroundings. She was in a hospital recovery room. There was a window that let in the morning sun. A TV hung on the wall opposite of Penny's bed. A monitor next to Penny beeped in sync with her heartbeat. Penny then looked down. She was wearing a hospital gown and was currently tucked under a sheet. A white mound of fur was next to her arm. Her heart suddenly leaped for joy.

"Bolt?" Penny reached out and rubbed Bolt's back. Bolt suddenly turned his head to see Penny awake. Bolt happily barked and jumped onto Penny's chest. Penny laughed and, despite her soreness, hugged Bolt tightly.

"Sweetie!" Mrs. Forrester came into the room and saw her child was awake. "You're okay! Oh, thank goodness." She then smothered Penny in a hug.

"Hey, mom." Penny said happily. "It's good to be back." She then petted Bolt and looked her mother straight in the eyes. "Mom, I saw him."

"Who?" Asked Mrs. Forrester.

"I saw dad." Penny said. "I saw him. He told me to tell you, he still loves you."

"..." Mrs. Forrester gawked for a moment, and then she smiled. "He still loves me. He still loves **us**." Tears threatened to fall from Mrs. Forrester's eyes.

"Oh, yeah." Penny remembered. "He also told me how you guys met."

Mrs. Forrester immediately snapped to attention and slightly blushed. "He told you what, now?"

"He told me about the party, the hearing, everything." Penny said. "How come you never told me?"

"Oh, that rascal!" Mrs. Forrester suddenly said. "He's been gone for who-knows how long, and then he tells you about the one thing I asked him to keep under wraps?! Ohhh, when I see him again..."

Penny laughed at her mother's reaction, and then she smiled at Bolt, who returned it. Penny suddenly remembered the fire.

"Hey, mom. How long has it been?" Penny asked. "Since the fire."

Mrs. Forrester stopped ranting and looked at her daughter. "Oh! Well...It's been about a week now."

"A week?" Penny thought things over. A week had passed by since she was caught in the fire. She was sore, but other than that, she felt fine. Even her foot, which had been trapped under the debris in the fire, felt okay. Hiro had managed to help her get out. Penny's eyes suddenly widened in remembrance.

"Hiro! Where's Hiro!?" Penny suddenly asked her mother.

"He's in the room right next to us." Mrs. Forrester replied. She had a slight look of discontent, which Penny noticed.

"Is he okay!?" Penny looked ready to lose it. Bolt looked concerned.

"He's fine, sweetie, but he's..." Mrs. Forrester trailed off.

"Mom! What happened to Hiro!?" Penny cried. When Mrs. Forrester hesitated to answer, Penny suddenly jumped out of her bed, ripped the heart rate monitor pad off of her chest, and put on a pair of nearby slippers.

"Penny, wait!" Mrs. Forrester called. Penny didn't respond as she ran out of her room and went to the next room over. Penny opened the door, and gasped loudly at what she saw.

Hiro's room was identical to Penny's. Hiro, however, was almost unrecognisable. Hiro had several bandages wrapped around his head to the point where only his hair, mouth, nose, and left eye were visible. Hiro's chest was completely wrapped in bandages, and his left arm was in a cast and suspended by cables. An IV drip ran from Hiro's right arm, and he had a breathing mask on his face. He was breathing, but Penny could hear that it was scratchy.

"Hiro!" Penny ran over and kneeled next to Hiro. Compared to Hiro, Penny made it out of the fire with hardly anything to show. Hiro, on the other hand, looked like he had been dragged to hell and back. Penny looked for a little longer, and then she began sobbing loudly, hands on her face. The sight of her dear friend in this condition was too much for her heart to bear.

"Hiro! Why would you do that?" Penny sobbed. "You were hurt because of me. I did this to you."

Bolt then sat next to Penny and tried to comfort her by rubbing his head on Penny's leg. Mrs. Forrester walked in and knelt next to Penny while putting her hands on her daughter's shoulders.

"Ms. Forrester?" A nurse walked in. "I'm sorry, but we need you to return to your own room. The doctor will be seeing you shortly."

Penny suddenly stood up and turned to the nurse. "What happened to Hiro!?"

The nurse took a tissue and wiped Penny's tears. "I can't give an entire diagnosis," The nurse stated. "But Hiro has suffered much from the fire. He is suffering from a minor concussion, his left arm is broken, and he has several second-degree burns all over his chest and legs."

Penny gasped when she heard Hiro's condition in detail. She couldn't take it anymore! First, Bolt disappears, he's found by Hiro, and then Hiro brings Bolt back to her, and now Hiro was suffering because he saved her! What had she done?

Mrs. Forrester placed her arm around Penny's shoulder. "Sweetie, I know that Hiro is in bad shape right now, but we need to get you back to your room. We can come back after the doctor examines you."

Penny looked like she wanted to argue, but then she slowly nodded her head and walked out of Hiro's room. Before leaving entirely, she cast one last glance at Hiro and hoped that he would be okay.

* * *

"Aaaaaand, you're all set to go Ms. Forrester!" The doctor informed. Penny made it out of the fire with minimally damaged lungs due to smoke inhalation, but other than that she was perfectly fine. After staying in the hospital for a week to make sure there were no symptoms, Penny was released.

"Thank you so much." Mrs. Forrester thanked the doctor. She then turned to Penny, who had just finished changing into her normal clothes. "Let's get going, dear."

"Mom." Penny looked her mother in the eye. "I want to check up on Hiro."

"Well..." A nurse standing next to the doctor started. "Hiro has sustained some substantial injuries, so he'll be bed-ridden for a while. I'm not sure if-"

"I don't care." Penny said firmly. "I want to see him."

Mrs. Forrester looked at Penny. The only other time she had seen this expression was when Penny wanted to get a dog. And when she had that expression on her face, there was no arguing. Mrs. Forrester sighed.

"I guess it wouldn't hurt to stop by for a little while." She finally said. "After all, you're off of the filming schedule."

Penny's face immediately lightened. She then gave her mother a massive hug. "Thank you so much." She then ran off to Hiro's room.

Mrs. Forrester rubbed her eye and sighed again. "I tell you, those two are coming closer by the second."

Penny had made it to Hiro's room. Hiro was still unconscious. Penny pulled up a chair and sat next to Hiro and gazed longingly onto his face.

Mrs. Forrester came in a little while later and sat in another chair.

Penny reached out and grabbed Hiro's right hand. "Please Hiro," Penny silently pleaded. "Come back to us. Come back to me."

The door to Hiro's room suddenly opened. Penny and Mrs. Forrester looked up to see Aunt Cass, Gogo, Wasabi, Honey Lemon, and Fred standing at the door.

"Cassie?" Mrs. Forrester asked. "You're here?"

"Where is he?" Aunt Cass demanded. She looked a bit restless.

Honey Lemon gasped as her eyes fell on the hospital bed. There, unmoving, was Hiro. He looked like he was in pretty bad condition.

"Hiro!" Aunt Cass hurried over and gave her nephew a look-over. "What happened to you?!"

Mrs. Forrester pulled Aunt Cass aside and began to explain the situation.

"Do you know what happened?" Gogo asked Penny.

Penny looked at the ground. "He...he was hurt trying to save me."

"What?" Wasabi asked. "He saved you? From what?"

"Did he save you from the evil Dr. Calico?" Fred asked. "Or from being crushed under a massive water kaiju? Or from-" Gogo roughly elbowed Fred in the side and shut him up.

"It's alright." Honey Lemon assured Penny. "Just tell us what happened. We're listening."

Penny took a deep breath. "Hiro came to Florida to bring Bolt back to me, but I was in the middle of a shoot when he arrived. While we were filming, a fire broke out and everyone but me managed to get out safely. Hiro and Bolt ran into the fire to try and find me, but then I got stuck under a piece of debris. Hiro managed to get me out, but then he was hurt when a prop fell from the ceiling."

Aunt Cass gasped. "Is that why he's like this?!"

"Yes." Penny scrunched up her face and tried not to cry. "It was my fault that he's been hurt. If I hadn't...If I had just..." Penny couldn't take it anymore and covered her face with her hands as tears spilled from her eyes and sobs shuddered her body.

"No, Penny." Honey Lemon walked over and gave Penny a hug. "It wasn't your fault. That's just how Hiro is. He cares for his friends to the point where he disregards his own safety to make sure that they're safe. I'm sure that Hiro wouldn't want you to think that you hurt him."

Penny hiccuped as she returned Honey Lemon's hug. "B-but, he did it j-just for m-me."

"I know." Honey Lemon said as she rubbed Penny's back. "That means that he really cares for you."

Penny looked at Hiro again. "Is he like this with you too?"

"Hiro cares for all of us." Honey Lemon said. "But his commitment to you is something that I've never seen before. It's like he cares for you more than just as a friend."

Penny blushed when she heard that. It did seem like Hiro went out of his way to help her, but holding her as someone more than a friend? Did Hiro really think she was special to him?

"You really think so?" Penny asked.

"Of course!" Honey Lemon said with a smile.

"Yep." Gogo said.

"Definitely." Wasabi said.

"No doubt." Fred said.

Honey Lemon then sat next to Penny and put her arm around Penny's shoulders. "Don't worry." Honey Lemon said. "Everything will be just fine."

* * *

"Geez, sounds like Hiro got it bad." Mittens said.

Bolt, Mittens, and Rhino were all waiting in the pet area. Bolt had just finished telling Mittens and Rhino what happened to Hiro.

"He did." Bolt said. "Hiro must really care for Penny if he's willing to throw himself in danger to help her."

"Alas!" Rhino said dramatically. "The ally of Penny has been injured."

"Well now, ain't this an odd coincidence." A voice said.

Bolt, Mittens, and Rhino turned around to see another cat approaching them.

"Mochi!" Bolt greeted. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, a lil' birdie said that Hiro was injured, so Cass, me, an' the others flew right on over." Mochi replied. "So what happened?"

"Hiro was helping me get Penny out of a fire at the studio," Bolt explained. "But he was injured in the process. He broke his arm, got a concussion, and lots of second-degree burns. He's recovering right now."

"That's my boy." Mochi said proudly.

"Are you not concerned for Hiro?" Mittens asked, confused.

"Nah." Mochi said confidently. "I know Hiro's a strong kid. It takes a lot more than just this to shake him up. He's gonna be just fine."

"That's good news, then." Bolt said.

Mochi nodded. "Well then, how about you two?" He looked at Mittens and Rhino. "How did the young'un take to y'all?"

"Very well!" Mittens replied. "As soon as she saw us, she asked to keep us!"

"Well, you had a little help." Bolt said while smirking.

"Oh, shush, you." Mittens chastised.

"We have been accepted into the family of the world's most famous super dog!" Rhino announced. "It's so awesome!"

"Well, good on y'all. You're going to like it, Mittens. Trust me." Mochi said.

"I sure hope so." Mittens said.

* * *

Hiro opened his eyes and looked around. The first thing he noticed was that he was floating. The second was that the area he was floating had odd wave patterns in the distance. Hiro tried to move his limbs, but he found himself unable to do so.

"Hey there, knucklehead." A voice in front of Hiro said.

Hiro looked up and saw a figure appearing before him. It sounded like…

"Tadashi?"

"Hey, bro." Tadashi smiled to his brother. "Good to see you."

"Tadashi!" Hiro called out. He was still unable to move. "What- Where?"

"Relax, you big baby." Tadashi smirked. "You're alright. I've been watching you for a while from here."

"Tadashi, why?" Hiro asked, his tone becoming bitter. "Why did you run in like that!? Why would you run straight into a fire and get yourself killed to save Callaghan!? He didn't need saving!"

"I ran into the fire to save Callaghan for the same reason that you ran into that fire to save Penny." Tadashi replied. "Okay, maybe not the exact same reason. I ran into the fire to try and save someone who needed help. Now obviously, I didn't know that Callaghan didn't need saving until too late, but that's not the point."

"Not the point?!" Hiro raged. "You died!"

"I did." Tadashi said calmly. "And I'm sorry for leaving you, Hiro. I really am. I would give anything to be with you right now, but I just can't do that."

"But-" Hiro protested.

"Hiro." Tadashi said more firmly. "I get it. My death wasn't fair to anybody, but you have to keep on moving. I'm gone, and you're just going to have to accept that. You've got your whole life ahead of you, knucklehead!"

Hiro wanted to say something, but no words came from his mouth.

"You've been spending more time with Penny, that I noticed." Tadashi said with a smirk. "You two are almost perfect for each other."

"Wha-bro!" Hiro protested. "This again?"

"Don't be embarrassed about it." Tadashi said. "Penny is a good person. I could tell that while I was still alive, and I could see it even now. So take a tip."

"What?" Hiro asked.

"Spend more time with Penny." Tadashi said. "Get to know her, become closer to her, and cherish your moments with her. It'll help you get over my death."

"Are you being serious?" Hiro asked.

"110% sure." Tadashi said. "Hiro, I know that you want me to be with you, but live a long and happy life first. I'll wait for you here with mom and dad."

"You saw mom and dad?" Hiro asked. "How are they?"

"They're fine." Tadashi replied. "They wanted to come see you, but they couldn't. They wanted me to tell you that they're proud of you and that they love you. we're watching over you, Hiro. So don't forget how much your family loves and supports you. Alright?"

"...Yeah." Hiro finally said. "Sure."

"That's my little bro." Tadashi said proudly. "Now, go back and tell your girlfriend that you're okay."

Hiro looked at Tadashi one last time and saw his brother giving him a warm smile as everything faded to black.

"See you later, little bro."

* * *

Penny was sitting next to Hiro again. It had been several days since she had been released from the hospital, but she came back frequently to check up on Hiro. Honey Lemon, Wasabi, Gogo, and Fred all went back home with Heathcliff on Fred's private jet. Heathcliff had given Hiro's backpack to Aunt Cass after Hiro had accidentally left it in the car. Aunt Cass was out with Mrs. Forrester to grab a snack.

"..." Penny looked at Hiro's face. It was calm and peaceful. Hiro's breathing had become less wheezy over the last few days, and now hardly any sound was being made.

Penny's shoulders slumped. She was becoming discouraged at Hiro not waking up. Even though he was stable, he showed no signs of waking. Penny then stood up and leaned over Hiro.

"Hiro." She said softly. "Please, wake up. I have so much I want to tell you. I know you're strong, but I need you here." She then paused as an irrational thought passed through her head. Penny then quickly looked around her to make sure no one was looking. She steeled herself and moved her mouth to Hiro's, kissing him on the lips. It was a strange feeling, but it felt good for some odd reason. Penny then pulled away. Hiro hadn't moved at all. Penny sadly turned back to her chair.

The sound of a throaty cough suddenly reverberated around the small room. Penny froze. Could it be? She turned around slowly.

"Urgh." Hiro groaned. His left eye opened slowly. "...Penny?"

Penny almost couldn't believe it. "Hiro?" Her voice had become remarkably soft.

Hiro blinked. He felt awful, but seeing Penny mitigated some of the pain. A small smile appeared on Hiro's face. "...Hey."

"Hiro!" Penny, overcome with pure joy, threw herself on Hiro.

"Agh!" Hiro cried in pain. "Penny, I'm happy to see you too. But please get off me; it hurts."

"Oh!" Penny jumped back a small distance while staying on the bed. "Sorry!"

Hiro looked at Penny. "How long has it been?"

"It's been about ten days." Penny said. "Since the fire. Since you saved me."

"Oh, yeah." Hiro said as he remembered the most recent events. "The fire." Hiro then eyed Penny. "Did you get hurt at all?"

Penny shifted uncomfortably. "Hiro, I need to apologize."

"For what?" Hiro wondered.

"You got hurt because of me." Penny said guiltily. "You threw yourself into danger just to help me. I'm sorry for that."

"Don't be." Hiro assured. "I'm just glad that you're okay."

Penny then looked Hiro in the eye. "But, why would you just run straight into a burning building to find me? Didn't you think about your own safety when you ran in?"

Hiro looked at Penny, and then he sighed. "I ran in because I wasn't about to let you die in the fire. I already lost someone close to me like that, and I wasn't about to let it happen again." Hiro then cleared his throat and blushed slightly. "Besides, you're precious to me, Pen."

Penny gasped. She then closed her eyes and smiled. 'He said I'm precious to him. I'm precious to Hiro.' Penny was enthralled at that thought.

"Hey, Pen." Hiro suddenly interrupted Penny's thoughts. "While I was unconscious, did you, by any chance, kiss me?"

Penny immediately went red. She started waving her hands rapidly. "I-it's not what you think!" Penny sputtered frantically. "I-I just wanted to show you that I care for you too and I didn't really think it through! I just saw that we were alone and I had this thought and I-"

Hiro interrupted Penny's rant by suddenly sitting up and bringing Penny's head in towards his to kiss her on the lips.

"Mmmph?!" Penny was startled by the sudden action, but then she realized the situation and melted into Hiro's lips.

"Because," Hiro said after separating. "I think I like it."

Penny's heart soared. She wasn't going to deny it anymore. Her heart belonged to Hiro, and his to her. She went in and the two young lovers locked lips once again, neither one wanting to break the embrace.

Unbeknownst to Hiro and Penny, they had spectators.

"Oh my." Aunt Cass said as she watched Hiro and Penny from a distance. "I knew that Hiro and Penny cared for each other, but not to this extent."

"I've suspected it for a while now," Mrs. Forrester said. "But now, I'm certain. These two are meant for each other."

"Reminds me of another couple." Aunt Cass said while playfully nudging Mrs. Forrester.

"Oh, Cassie!" Mrs. Forrester mock-reprimanded. "I thought that we wouldn't talk about that day!"

Aunt Cass laughed. "But it's true, isn't it?"

Mrs. Forrester looked back at the two youths. "I'm just glad that my baby has managed to find someone who makes her happy."

"She's a lucky one, I'll tell you that." Aunt Cass said. "And I'm happy for Hiro."

"Hiro, I've been wanting to ask you." Penny said after the two separated.

"Shoot." Hiro said while smiling. Seeing his smile lit up Penny's world like no other.

"That armor you wore when you came to save me." Penny said. "It looked just like the one from the masked man incident. Are you...?"

Hiro sighed. He then looked around quickly before turning back to Penny. "Promise not to tell anyone?"

Penny nodded.

Hiro looked at his armband, which was sitting on the table next to his bed. "Me, Baymax, Honey Lemon, Gogo, Wasabi, Fred, we're all members of the Big Hero 6."

Penny gasped. That meant that Hiro was a superhero! But that also meant…

"So that was you?" Penny asked. "When you were fighting the masked man?"

Hiro nodded. "I didn't want to tell anyone because I really don't need to be suffocated by media people."

Penny giggled. "Trust me, I know that feeling." She then grabbed Hiro's hand. "My best friend is a superhero. Just when I thought you couldn't get any better."

Hiro smiled at Penny, and Penny continued to talk to Hiro for the rest of the evening.

* * *

 **The Following Week...**

Hiro had finally been released from the hospital. His arm would be in a cast for a few months, but other than that, his burns and concussion were under manageable levels.

Hiro and Penny picked up their pets before meeting outside.

"Thanks for everything, Hiro." Penny said. She was extremely happy for her friend getting out of the hospital. Bolt, Mittens, and Rhino looked happy to see Hiro up and well again.

"No problem, Pen." Hiro said while patting Bolt on the head. "We're going to see each other again, right?"

"Well, actually..." Penny said.

"We're planning on moving back to California at the end of the year." Mrs. Forrester walked out with Aunt Cass. "Now that Penny's no longer filming for _Bolt_ , we can go back."

"Really?!" Hiro was excited. "That's great!"

"Even better!" Penny said. "I want to go to San Fransokyo Acting Arts School. It's right next to SFIT!"

"Amazing!" Aunt Cass said. "That means that you and Hiro will be able to see each other whenever you want!"

The thought of seeing each other put Hiro and Penny in a state of happiness.

"But first," Penny said. "I have to officially resign from acting on _Bolt._ I have to go to Sparkling Core Studios tomorrow to get the official process done."

Hiro then realized that Penny was going to go back to the studio one last time, and it probably wasn't going to be a pleasant trip since she nearly died there not too long ago.

"Hiro," Penny said, almost as if she could hear his thoughts. "Do you think...you could go with me to the resignation?"

"Wha-" Hiro was startled, but regained his composure. "I mean, sure! Of course!" He then turned to Aunt Cass. "Can I?"

"Well..." Aunt Cass thought for a bit. "I suppose. One more day won't hurt anybody."

"Great!" Penny said happily. "We can meet at the studio at 10 in the morning, alright?"

"Sure thing, Penny." Hiro said while smiling. It felt good to have Penny back in her happy and sweet personality Hiro remembered her for. "See you tomorrow."

Bolt barked a farewell, Mittens meowed respectfully, and Rhino ran around in circles excitedly.

Hiro waved goodbye to Penny, and then followed Aunt Cass. Tomorrow was going to be a good day.

* * *

Hiro stood in front of the gates to the studio with Aunt Cass. Hiro checked his watch, which read 10:02 AM.

'Where could they be?' Hiro wondered.

"Hello!" Mrs. Forrester's voice rang out. Penny followed close behind with Bolt, Mittens, and Rhino.

"Hey, Hiro!" Penny greeted with a smile.

"Hey, Pen." Hiro said before the two hugged. Aunt Cass stifled laugh, but no one noticed.

"Are you ready?" Penny asked after separating.

"Sure am." Hiro said. "Let's go."

The two then walked to the studio gates hand in hand. The pet trio followed after them.

"They're hitting it off well, aren't they?" Mrs. Forrester said.

"They sure are." Aunt Cass agreed. "Let's go."

The group walked towards the office area, but they passed an unfriendly sight on the way. The group passed sound stage 7, which was charred black from the fire. There was a faint smell of smoke still in the air.

"Ah..." Penny stumbled slightly as unpleasant memories suddenly rushed through her head.

"Pen, don't think about it." Hiro said while holding Penny up. "I'm here, Pen."

After hearing Hiro's voice, Penny's vision cleared up and she regained her composure.

"Is everything okay?" Mrs. Forrester asked.

Penny took a deep breath. "Yeah, everything is okay, mom. Don't worry."

"Oh, good." Mrs. Forrester breathed a sigh of relief.

"Come on." Hiro grabbed Penny's hand again. "Let's finish and get outta here. This place isn't gonna do is any favors if we linger."

"Agreed." Aunt Cass said. "Let's keep moving."

Eventually, the group made it into the office area. The group walked towards the meeting room Penny was scheduled to be in. A security guard stood outside the door.

"Excuse me, miss." The guard said. "I'm sorry, but pets are not allowed into the meeting room."

Bolt growled angrily at the guard. Mittens looked annoyed. Rhino looked angry. Hiro didn't even know that a hamster could look angry.

"Bolt, it's okay." Penny assured while rubbing Bolt's head.

"It's fine, dear." Aunt Cass said. "I can wait out here with Bolt and the others. You just go on and finish what you need to."

"Thank you, Ms. Cassie" Penny said as she stood back up.

Aunt Cass nodded and then winked at Mrs. Forrester, who flashed a hidden smile. Aunt Cass then guided Mittens, Rhino, and Bolt back outside.

"Alright then," Mrs. Forrester said. "Shall we?" The group then entered the meeting room.

The meeting room was oval-shaped. There was an oval table with many chair around it. Most of the chairs were occupied by studio staff, but there were three empty chairs at the end of the table nearest to the entrance.

"Ah, Penny." Mindy greeted. "Please, sit down. We have much to talk about."

Penny, Mrs. Forrester, and Hiro all took the remaining chairs. Hiro felt several stares directed at him, but he largely ignored them. Once everyone was seated, Mindy stood up.

"So it says here that you are requesting a resignation from filming on the show?" Mindy asked after flipping through some papers in her arms.

"That's correct." Penny replied.

The room was then filled with murmuring from the other studio members. Some people were shocked at the decision, but others were understanding.

"Now, look here!" The director suddenly stood up. "We're just supposed to accept that? You just say you want to resign and we're supposed to be content with that?"

Hiro glared at the director. The amount of disrespect for Penny's decision was rubbing Hiro the wrong way.

A few other studio members voiced their agreement with the director, but it was met with equal retaliation from those who respected Penny's decision to resign. It looked like things were about to escalate, but then Mindy stood up.

"Enough!" Mindy's voice cut through the arguments and silenced them. "Penny has made a decision, and we are supposed to respect it. I don't care if you like her decision or not, but we are going to follow through with it." She then glared at all the other staff members as if she was daring opposition to her statement. "Good."

The rest of the meeting was relatively straightforward. Penny signed several papers, Mrs. Forrester signed a few as well, and Hiro watched the entire process. After everything was finished, Penny handed her papers to a staff member. Mrs. Forrester did the same.

"And, that should just about do it." Mindy said. "You are now free to go, Penny. Thank you for your time."

"You're welcome." Penny said. She then walked out the door with her mother and Hiro.

"That wasn't too bad." Hiro said.

"Indeed." Mrs. Forrester said. "Let's go meet up wi-"

The meeting room door opened again. Mindy stepped out.

"Oh, good. You're still here." Mindy closed the door behind her.

"Ms. Mindy?" Penny was a bit confused. "Did you need something else?"

"No, I came out to talk to you." Mindy said before clearing your throat. "I guess the first thing that I want to say is thank you for all of your hard work. You have an incredible talent for acting, and I'm sure that you'll be an amazing actor in the future."

"T-thank you." Penny said, not sure how to handle the praise.

"And, I'd also like to apologize on behalf of the entire studio staff." Mindy said. "We've put you through a lot of stuff that no actor like you should have gone through. I heard that Bolt came back, so I'm happy for you. We've made you make hard decisions, and I hope that you'll find it in your heart to forgive us."

"Apology accepted." Penny said with a smile. "I know that you did all those things because you wanted to keep the show going, but I never held a grudge against you."

Mindy smiled. "Well, then. I think I should head back in now. Goodbye, Penny. I hope that we can work again on better terms in the future."

Penny smiled as Mindy walked back into the meeting room.

"Wow." Hiro said. "Mindy's not as bad of a person as I thought she was."

"Yeah." Penny said. "I could tell that she just wanted to-"

"PENNYYYYYY!" A voice rang down the hall as a lanky man in a suit with glasses ran towards the group.

"Penny! Why are you leaving!?" Agent tried to catch his breath. "We had so many plans for the future! We were going to go even bigger than before! We could have had you go on magazine covers! We could have gotten you on the _Tonight Show_!"

Hiro frowned. "Who's this guy?"

"This is my agent." Penny said. "Or rather, my **former** agent."

"No!" Agent cried. "I can still be your agent! If you just stay here, then we can work together and achieve even higher goals than before! You'll be able to-"

Agent's rant was stopped when Hiro had finally had enough of the man's prattle. Hiro walked right over to Agent, reared his leg behind him, and then delivered a powerful kick to Agent's nether regions.

The air was knocked clean out of Agent from the strike. He then fell to the ground, unmoving.

"Shall we get going?" Hiro asked while smiling and holding out his hand to Penny.

Penny laughed and accepted Hiro's hand. "Let's."

The two walked out of the office area, and as Mrs. Forrester passed Agent's unconscious body, a small smile crept onto her face.

Hiro and Penny walked outside with a smile on their faces and with their hands tightly knit together. Things were finally starting to look brighter.

* * *

 **And there we have it! The Penniro has been established! Sure, they may still be kind of young, but they are with each other. That scene of Hiro kicking Agent in the crotch was inspired by a Penniro picture I saw on Tumblr that I thought was funny. Other than that, that is the end of the chapter! It's a little shorter than before, but I promise things will get better. As always, if you enjoyed the chapter, please consider showing your support for the story by leaving a comment. I'll try and get the next chapter out as soon as I can, so stay tuned! Until next time, peace!**


	9. Chapter 8: Together

**A/N: Que pasa? I'm back from the land of the dead! (Also known as college prep, but it's close enough.) I think I've kept you waiting for long enough, so let's get straight into it. Enjoy!**

 **New Favorites and Followers:**

 _-None-_

 **Thank you for your continued support!**

* * *

 **Chapter 8: Together**

The bond between Hiro and Penny only grew when they admitted their feelings for each other. It continued to grow and blossom over several years until the young couple could hardly stay apart. Penny had moved back to California with her mother and the pet trio into a country home that was a 45-minute drive from San Fransokyo. Penny had recently finished grade school and held a party at her house to celebrate.

"Hey, Pen!" Hiro greeted when he and Aunt Cass came to the front door of the Forresters' house. Hiro held a bunch of flowers and a card. Aunt Cass held Mochi in her arms.

"Hiro! Hey!" Pen said happily as she beckoned the two in. Penny's house was as modest on the outside as it was on the inside. Penny guided the newcomers to the living room, where Fred, Wasabi, Honey Lemon, Gogo, Mrs. Forrester, and Bolt were all sitting on the sofas. Bolt, Rhino, and Mittens were watching the TV.

"Hey, there he is!" Fred said as he saw Hiro come in. Aunt Cass placed Mochi on the ground, and he walked over to join the pet trio.

"Welcome!" Mrs. Forrester greeted. "We're glad to see that you could make it!"

"Heh, hey everyone." Hiro said while running his hand through his hair. Hiro had changed quite a bit over the last few years. He now stood at 5 feet 7 inches, and his hair was still as messy as it always was. Hiro then handed the flowers and card to Penny. "Congratulations on your graduation, Pen."

"Thanks! I'm happy that I finally did it!" Penny had changed as well. She had grown to a modest 5 feet 6 inches, her red hair reached down to her shoulders, and she was more curvaceous than a few years ago.

"Man, Hiro." Wasabi said. "You just missed it!"

"Missed what?" Hiro asked.

"They rebooted the _Bolt_ series!" Fred said while scrunching his face slightly.

"And it looks terrible." Gogo said nonchalantly. She blew a bubble with her gum.

"Really?" Hiro asked. He was amazed that they would try to continue the show after such a long time, especially after Penny retired from it.

"We watched the first episode." Penny said. She grimaced slightly. "They found a new person to fill in for me, but she and the other Bolt were kidnapped by aliens."

"...Wow." Hiro said. "How cheesy and desperate can you get?"

"I know, right?!" Fred said. "They completely butchered the show! I say that if they're going to make it as terrible as this, then they-"

"Hiro?" Penny whispered while tugging Hiro's shirt sleeve. "Can I talk with you? Alone?"

Hiro nodded as he and Penny silently slinked away with everyone's attention on the ranting Fred.

Penny and Hiro went into a hallway where they couldn't be seen or heard.

"Hey, what's up?" Hiro asked.

Penny took a deep breath and then looked Hiro in the eyes. "I got accepted to the San Fransokyo Acting Arts School! I'll be going there in the fall!"

Hiro gasped. The San Fransokyo Acting Arts School was one of the most prestigious performance art schools in the country. Getting in was near-impossible unless you were exceptionally talented.

"That's great, Pen!" Hiro said. "You're gonna do great in there!...but why are you being so secretive about it?"

Penny sighed. "You know that I'm still considered a famous actress, right?"

Hiro nodded. "But why is that a problem for college?"

"Well, I'm going to be going into the school under a pen name so as to not attract unwanted attention. You know how the media is these days."

Hiro groaned in agreement. Media people were like hungry wolves. If they wanted something bad enough, they would start doing some weird things to get it.

"So, who knows about this?" Hiro asked.

"Mom, Ms. Cassie, and all of our friends in the living room." Penny responded.

"No one else?" Hiro asked.

Penny shook her head. "I think it'll be nice to go to school without being drowned in a sea of reporters for once."

Hiro nodded. He then took Penny's hand in his own. "Pen."

Penny looked Hiro in the eyes.

Hiro took a deep breath. "You know that I'll always support you no matter where you go or what you do. I'm happy that you got in to SFAAS, and I promise that I'll never stop supporting you, even to the point of death."

"Hiro!" Penny suddenly cried. "You can't say that! Last time you did, you nearly died because of me! I can't lose you! You-you're important to me." Penny looked at the floor and blushed a bright pink as she said that.

"I know." Hiro said. "But I promise you this: I will never leave you. I will stay alive for you and cherish you as much as I can. But you have to do the same for me, promise?" Hiro held out his pinky.

Penny looked at Hiro's finger, and then she nodded in agreement. "Promise." She curled her own pinky around Hiro's. She then leapt forward and tackled Hiro in a bear hug. "Thank you, Hiro. I love you."

"I love you, too." Hiro replied as he returned the embrace.

* * *

 **A few years later...**

Penny had just finished classes for the day. The 21 year-old redhead walked out of the lecture hall with her backpack slung on her back while chatting with her friends. Penny, under the pen name of Abigail Woods, had made some new friends while at school. After spending several years with them, she trusted them enough to let them know who she really was. They were amazed, but they kept it a secret between themselves for Penny's sake.

Alice was the talkative one. She had bleached white hair with purple highlights and wore glasses. Whenever she was with other people, words had to keep spewing out of her mouth or she would go into a nervous shock.

Meena was very quiet; the polar opposite of Alice. She had short blonde hair, and she talked very little and had a soft voice. If people knew Meena well, they would know that she was very wise and had a sweet personality.

Jordan was the largest of the group. He had short brown hair. His arms were massive and packed enough punch to smash chairs into splinters. Penny had actually seen it firsthand once, and as scary as the sight was, it was rather impressive.

Will was the nerd of the group. He had brown hair, and was currently reading a book on the history of plays and wasn't paying attention to the vicinity in front of him. Every so often, he bumped into a passerby and he muttered an incomprehensible apology. The group was currently walking away from the lecture hall.

"Ohmygosh!" Alice ranted. "That lesson was SOOOO boring. I can't remember a single syllable of what Mr. Gunderson said!"

"Y-yeah." Meena said while clutching her books to her chest.

"No kiddin.'" Jordan said. "If I stayed still for one minute longer, my leg woulda fallen asleep. That's never a good feelin'."

"Sorry." Will murmured as he bumped into a bench.

Penny laughed. "Will, maybe you should take your nose out of your book every once in a while."

"Uhhh...wha?" Will looked up.

Penny giggled. "Never mind."

Will shrugged and dove back into his book.

"Hey, Penny!" Alice suddenly. "What're your plans for tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow?" Penny thought for a moment. "Actually, I have someone staying over at my place today and tomorrow. Why do you ask?"

"We were gonna hit downtown tomorrow, y'know?" Jordan said. "Wanna come with us?"

"Well, I promised my guest that I would hang out with him tomorrow, so I don't think I can-"

"Wait a minute!" Alice suddenly interrupted. "You said 'him?'"

"Y-yes?" Penny replied.

"Who is this guy?" Alice demanded. "And you say he's gonna stay at your house?"

"Alice, it's fine." Penny assured her friend. "I've known this guy for a long time, and I trust him. He's my best friend."

"But who is he?" Jordan asked, slightly curious.

Penny opened her mouth to respond when a small beeping sound came from the nearby street. Penny turned her head to see a two-seater scooter roll up. Its rider, who was 22 years old now, was wearing a white helmet with a green stripe. He dismounted the scooter, took off his helmet, and walked over to Penny's group. He had a mop of messy black hair.

Penny smiled. "That's him." She then walked over to Hiro and the two embraced each other. "Hey, you." Penny greeted.

"Hey, Pen." Hiro said. "How are you?"

"I'm fine." Penny said while separating from Hiro and smiling. Hiro's heart quickened its pace when he saw Penny's smile. Hiro swore that her smile could light up the darkest room.

The rest of Penny's group walked over.

"Uh, hello." Hiro greeted. He gave a small wave and smiled awkwardly.

"Are you Penny's best friend?" Alice suddenly asked.

"Wha-" Hiro started.

"Yep! This is him!" Penny proudly smiled while wrapping her arms around Hiro's neck.

"Hey man, you look familiar..." Jordan scrutinized Hiro over. Meena did the same.

"Uh..." Hiro began to feel uncomfortable under their stares.

"What's your name, bro?" Jordan finally asked.

Hiro looked at Penny, and she nodded.

"I'm Hiro." Hiro extended his hand. "Hiro Hamada."

The entire group perked up at that. Even Will looked up when he heard Hiro say his name.

"Y-y-y-you're Hiro Hamada?!" Alice suddenly asked, her voice jumping up several decibels. Several heads turned their direction. Alice pointed a shaky finger at Hiro. "A-as in the 'Graduated highschool at 13' Hiro Hamada?! The SFIT Prodigy of the Century Hiro Hamada?!"

Hiro sheepishly rubbed the back of his head. "Am I known like that? I had no idea-"

"Dude!" Jordan grabbed Hiro's hand and shook it up and down rapidly. "What an honor! I can't believe I'm meeting another celebrity!"

Hiro looked at Penny in confusion. "I'm not really that famo-"

"Can you sign this?" Will handed Hiro a piece of paper while turning back to his book.

"Uh, sure?" Hiro took the paper and signed it with a pen. He then handed the paper back to Will, who quickly shoved it into his pocket. "Not sure why you'd want it tho-"

"Wow, it's Hiro Hamada!" A student said to her friend from a short distance away.

"He's even cooler-looking in person than on TV!" another student remarked.

"He's kinda...scrawny, though."

"Well, duh! What super-smart person isn't?"

"That's kinda prejudicial, isn't it?"

"I'm just sayin'!"

"I wonder if he'll shake my hand..."

"I wonder if he'll sign my belly!"

Hiro rubbed the back of his head sheepishly at the small crowd that formed around him. Hiro wasn't used to this much attention from other people. In fact, Hiro expected to be criticized and told off by the students since that was how Hiro spent most of grade school. Being the center of attention was never Hiro's favorite position.

Penny glared at some of the nearby female students who were giving Hiro a hungry look. She then tightened her arms around Hiro's neck to send a message.

"Do you see that?" One student asked.

"Hiro and Abigail are a thing!"

"Wow, She's so lucky!"

"I would give anything to be in her place right now..." One student fell over while having blissful thoughts about Hiro.

"You think he'll sign my belly?"

Hiro then turned back to Penny's group of friends and cleared his throat. "Well, it was really nice to meet you all, but I think it's time for me and Penny to head out."

Penny let go of Hiro's neck and waved to her friends. "Bye, guys! Have fun tomorrow!"

"See ya!" Alice smiled and waved. "Stay safe!"

"Bye." Meena let out a timid smile and a small wave.

"Catch ya later." Jordan waved.

"Sorry." Will said as he walked into a bicycle that was chained to a bike rack.

Penny smiled and followed Hiro to his scooter. Hiro sat down, put on his helmet, and offered a red helmet to Penny. "Ready?"

Penny accepted the helmet and sat down behind Hiro, putting her arms around Hiro's torso. "Let's."

Hiro blushed slightly at the contact, but then he pressed the starter and started driving. As Hiro was leaving, he could hear a voice shouting behind him.

"Wait! Sign my belly!"

Hiro groaned and was suddenly relieved that they were finally leaving. Penny laughed when she heard Hiro's groan.

By the time Hiro arrived at the Forrester's residence, the sun was beginning to set. Hiro drove up the road and saw Penny's house. He rolled up the driveway and stopped behind the Forresters' car. He got off, took off his helmet, and offered a hand to Penny as she dismounted the scooter.

"Why, thank you." Penny giggled as she stepped down.

Hiro blushed again, and then walked to the front door with Penny in hand. He pressed the doorbell, and a barking could be heard from inside the house.

"Bolt!" Penny said happily as the door opened. Bolt happily jumped at Penny, and Penny caught Bolt in her arms. "I'm home!"

Bolt barked a happy greeting and licked Penny's face. Penny laughed as she set Bolt down and wiped the dog drool off of her face.

"Welcome home, dear." Mrs. Forrester smiled as she came out onto the front porch. She was holding Mittens in her arms and was gently stroking her back. "How was your day?"

"Great!" Penny replied.

Mrs. Forrester nodded and turned to Hiro. "And you, young man. Was the drive here safe?"

"Yes ma'am." Hiro replied. "I even got to meet Penny's school friends. They're a real nice group of people."

"Just like your friend group." Mrs. Forrester beamed. "You two know how to find good friends, don't you?"

Hiro nodded while Penny turned to him. "Do you have everything you need?"

"Yeah, I do." Hiro replied. "It's in my scooter."

Hiro was staying over at the Forresters' place while Aunt Cass went out to meet a friend in Canada. Hiro could have stayed at the Lucky Cat Cafe while she was gone, but since Aunt Cass took Mochi with her, only Baymax would have been able to keep him company. Hiro then asked if he could spend a few nights with the Forresters, and they agreed.

Hiro walked over to his scooter, opened the storage area, and took out a backpack. He slung it over his shoulder and walked back to the front door.

"Well then, come on in!" Mrs. Forrester opened the door all the way and allowed Hiro, Penny, and Bolt to walk in.

"Hiro, come with me." Penny motioned to the stairs. "I'll show you where to put your stuff."

The two then walked up the stairs while Bolt walked over to the living room, where Mrs. Forrester had the TV running. Rhino was in front of the TV as a news channel played. Mrs. Forrester then sat on the couch in front of the TV while still stroking Mittens' back. She then smiled to herself. 'Penny and Hiro have been spending lots of good times together, recently.' She thought as she looked at the TV screen. 'Maybe one day they just might...'

Hiro followed Penny until she opened a door in the hallway and walked in. Hiro followed. When he went into Penny's room, Hiro took a quick look around. The room was relatively average for a bedroom in terms of size. There was a single window, a desk covered with books and papers, a couch, and a single bed. There was also a closet, a bathroom, and a fan on the ceiling. There was a laptop on Penny's desk, and all of the photos that Penny had had in Bolt's trailer were on the wall near the head of the bed. The walls had pink and purple stripe designs, and the floor was hard wood.

"You know." Hiro said as he looked around. "I think this is the first time I've ever been in your room."

Penny laughed as she sat down on her bed. "You're right. What do you think?"

"What do I think?" Hiro was caught off-guard by the sudden question. "Uh, I think it's great! It's a whole lot tidier than my room so..." Hiro looked around. "There's only one bed, so I guess I'll sleep on the couch?"

Penny had a thought go through her head, and thinking about it suddenly made her face heat up. Penny took a deep breath. "O-or, you could, uh, s-sleep on the bed? W-with me?"

Hiro turned to look at his friend. His brain slowly processed what Hiro had just heard. Hiro face started to go red. "Wh-what did you just say?"

"Y-you could..." Penny stammered. "S-sleep with me? On the bed?"

Hiro and Penny both went redder than a tomato. Hiro suddenly felt his knees begin to shake.

"W-where did that idea come from!?" Hiro suddenly said. Sure, he and Penny had hugged and even kissed before, but this was seriously taking it to a whole new level.

Penny covered her face in embarrassment. "T-the thought just occurred to me! W-was it a b-bad idea?"

Hiro tried to regain his composure. He then cleared his throat. "W-well...I guess it could work. Beats sleeping on the couch, I guess..."

Penny nodded and clutched her arm while looking at the floor. Hiro ran his hand through his hair as he tried to calm his heart.

"Penny? Hiro? Dinner's ready!" Mrs. Forrester called from below.

"Coming, mom!" Penny called back as she stood up and walked to the door. She then grabbed Hiro's hand. "Come on, let's go."

"...yeah." Hiro said while putting a smile back on his face and following Penny.

Dinner had been amazing for Hiro. Mrs. Forrester had whipped up a bunch of Penny's favorite foods, and was scrumptious. Hiro and Penny hadn't talked to each other very much during dinner, both still shaken over the most recent event. After dinner had concluded, Penny and Hiro went upstairs to get ready for bed. Penny showered first, and Hiro went in after her. Penny was sitting on her bed while Hiro washed up. She wore a white T-shirt and black short-shorts.

"..." Penny was thinking to herself. 'I told Hiro that he could sleep in the bed with me. Why am getting so worked up over it?' Penny suddenly flushed bright pink again. 'I told him he could sleep with me. Did I make it sound like we were gonna-' Realization hit like a truck and Penny suddenly covered her face with both her hands and started shaking her head violently.

"What's wrong?" Hiro asked while walking out of the bathroom. He was wearing a black tank top and sport shorts.

"Ah!" Penny snapped out of her thoughts and started waving her hands rapidly. "N-no! Nothing! I-I was just-"

Hiro then walked over to Penny and placed a finger on her lips, immediately silencing her rant. He then smiled at her and sat next to her on the bed. "Pen, you know you can tell me anything, right?"

Penny paused, and then sighed while settling back down.

"How is school going for you?" Hiro asked.

"I-it's going alright, I guess..." Penny replied. "How about you? Aren't you finishing grad school soon?"

Hiro smiled and nodded. Hiro had stayed at SFIT for 4 years of undergrad and two years of grad to get a Master's. "I'll be graduating soon. You'll be there to see me, won't you?"

"Y-yeah! Of course!" Penny said.

Hiro then ran his hand through his hair. "What about you? Aren't you auditioning for movie roles soon?"

"Yeah, I am." Penny replied. Penny was still in school, but she would soon be auditioning for world-renown studio productions. There were hundreds of studios fighting each other to get a chance for Penny to film with them once she graduated. "Both of us are realizing our dreams, aren't we?"

"That we are." Hiro said while remembering a distant time. "Hey, Pen. Do you remember that day? When we first met?"

"I do." Penny smiled. "I was only eight at the time, but meeting you was probably the best thing that's happened to me."

Hiro blushed slightly. "I remember when I first saw you."

"Hmm?" Penny tilted forward slightly to look Hiro in the face. "And what did you think?"

Hiro nervously rubbed the back of his head. "Ah, uh, well..." Hiro took a deep breath. "I thought that you looked beautiful."

Penny gasped and covered her mouth with her hands.

Hiro decided to go a step further. "I thought that you were the prettiest girl I'd ever seen before, and after I got to talk with you, you were the sweetest girl I'd ever met. Every other girl that I'd been around ignored me or teased me, but not you."

Penny blushed. "You...you really think I'm pretty? And sweet?"

Hiro placed an arm around Penny's shoulder and rested her head in the crook of his neck. "If I said you weren't, I'd be lying."

Penny then closed her eyes and processed everything Hiro had just said. She then smiled. Hiro was a wonderful person, and she was lucky to know him. Hiro and Penny stayed together for a while, and then Hiro looked at the clock on the desk.

"Hey, Pen." Hiro said. "It's getting late. I think it's time for us to hit the hay."

"Oh, alright." Penny agreed that it was getting late. The two of them looked at the bed. "Y-you want this side of the bed?"

"Uh, sure." Hiro replied. After an awkward standoff, the two crawled under the covers. They then turned their bodies so that their backs faced each other, both too embarrassed to face each other. Penny then turned off the lights, and the room became dark. The only sounds that could be heard were from the crickets outside, chirping their night song.

"..." Hiro tried to go to sleep, but the sheer awkwardness of the situation made it difficult.

"..." Penny was in a similar predicament. Maybe sleeping in the bed together wasn't the greatest idea after all.

Hiro was thinking to himself. At this rate, neither of them were going to get any sleep. The possibility of falling on the floor due to being so close to the edge of the bed wasn't really helping, either. Hiro then decided to act. "...Penny." Hiro suddenly said. He turned his body to face Penny.

"?" Penny turned her body as well.

"I just wanted to make it official to you now." Hiro said while sitting up. Penny sat up as well, and she could see him blushing a crimson red despite the darkness. Hiro then reached out and grabbed Penny's hands in his own. "We've been friends for a long time, and we've gone through a lot together. Actually, I'd say we've been more than just friends for a while now."

Penny gasped. "Hiro, what are you-"

"I've already said this before, but this time, I really mean it." Hiro then reached out and placed his hand on the side of Penny's face. "Penny Forrester, I love you. With all my heart and being, love you. You are the one who makes me happy in my life, and I want you to be happy too."

Penny froze for a moment, and then tears started to well up in her eyes. She then covered her face with her hands as she began to sob silently.

Hiro began to panic internally. 'Did I say something wrong?'

Penny then lurched forward and threw her arms around Hiro while continuing to cry. "Hiro, I-I..." Penny hiccuped as she tried to find the words. "I love you too. You're the best human friend I've ever had."

Hiro smiled. "I promise to be with you and support you, no matter where we are or what we do."

"Yes, that sounds great." Penny replied as Hiro gently rubbed her back. Neither of them remembered lying down and falling asleep. Penny and Hiro fell asleep in each other's arms, and the embrace seemed to help lull the two into a peaceful rest.

* * *

Penny looked around her. It was pitch black. There was absolutely nothing to be seen. "Hello?" She called into the darkness. "Hiro? Anyone?!"

A bark could be heard in the distance.

Penny gasped. "Bolt?" She started running towards where she heard the bark. There was another bark, and another. Each time, it sounded closer. "Bolt!"

A white shepherd dog finally came into view. Bolt turned around to see Penny. He seemed to be worried about something.

"Bolt!" Penny kneeled next to her beloved pet. "Where are we?"

Bolt turned around and barked again. Penny looked at where he was barking, and she felt her heart race. Before her was a burning building, and it was not just any building. It was Sparkling Core Films studios sound stage 7. The glow from the flames lit up the darkness, and Penny could feel the heat from the blaze. Penny then began to have some unpleasant memories. She clutched her head as the memories began to reappear. _The fire. Getting trapped. Hiro injured. Almost suffocating._ Penny's breathing began to become more rapid. Bolt suddenly barked and ran towards the studio.

"Bolt!" Penny ran after her dog. "Come back!" Bolt ran into the burning sound stage. Penny hesitated for a moment, and then ran in after Bolt. When she made it inside, the smoke and heat almost overwhelmed her. Penny coughed and looked around for Bolt, but she didn't see him anywhere. What she did see made her stomach wrench.

"Hiro!" Penny spotted Hiro trapped under several pieces of debris. She ran over to him fearing the worst. 'What's going on?' Penny thought to herself. 'It's almost a complete reenactment of the fire all those years ago!' Penny reached Hiro and looked him over, he looked terrible. His lower half was buried under the pile of debris, he had burn marks all over his face and arms, and he was covered in soot.

"...Penny?" Hiro looked up weakly. His eyes were barely open.

"Hiro, don't worry!" Penny cried. "I'm going to get you out of here!" She then reached out to pull a piece of debris away, but her body suddenly froze before she could grab it.

'What's going on?' Penny thought to herself. 'I can't move!' Penny suddenly felt herself moving backwards due to some invisible force. She tried to reach out to Hiro, but her body refused to move. "Hiro!" Penny struggled to reach out to her friend as she continued to move away, moving faster and faster. Penny tried to kick, squirm, anything to try and reach Hiro. Penny just kept moving faster and faster away until she flew out of the sound stage.

"No!" Penny shouted as she tried to go back into the stage. Tears started falling from her eyes. "He needs my help!" Penny suddenly halted a small distance away from the outside of the stage. Before she could process anything else, the stage suddenly exploded in a fiery blast that made everything in Penny's vision go white. The last thing she could hear was Hiro screaming in pain.

"NO!" Penny shouted. "HIRO!"

Then, everything went black.

* * *

"AAAHHHHH!" Penny bolted upright in her bed while shrieking. She then placed a hand on her head as she tried to take in her surroundings. She was in her bed, in her room, in her home. She was safe. It was still dark outside, and the crickets were still chirping. No fire, no explosions.

"Pen?" Hiro, who had awoken from Penny's sudden outburst, sat up and looked at his dear friend. "What's wrong?"

Penny suddenly turned and crushed Hiro in a tight embrace. "You're here. You're safe. Thank goodness." She then began to sob in relief.

Hiro was confused, but he returned the embrace and gently shushed Penny while rubbing her back. After a while, Hiro let go of Penny and looked her in the eyes.

"What's wrong?" Hiro asked softly. "Did you have a nightmare?"

Penny silently nodded.

Hiro then placed a hand on Penny's shoulder. "You want to talk about it? You don't have to tell me if you aren't comfortable talking about it."

Penny hiccupped and took a deep breath. "I-I had a d-dream. It was ab-bout y-you."

Hiro raised an eyebrow.

"There w-was a f-fire." Penny continued while shaking. "Y-you were stuck under a p-pile of debris. I t-tried to get y-you out, but...I...I..." Penny covered her hands and continued to sob. It was too painful to try and remember. She felt Hiro's arms wrap around her.

"Pen, I know that you're concerned about me, but I'm concerned for you too." Hiro spoke gently. "I know that you feel guilty for me getting hurt in the fire, but I told you, it's okay. I'm fine. I don't blame you for it. I'm here for you, Pen." Hiro then rested Penny's ear on his chest. Penny could hear Hiro's heart beating at a steady rhythm.

"I'm here, Pen. Here for you." Hiro reassured. "It'll be okay."

Penny then calmed down and looked at Hiro. "You haven't forgotten our promise, right?" She held up her pinky.

"Of course not." Hiro held up his own pinky. "I'll always be here for you."

The two curled their pinkies, and Hiro smiled. He brought Penny's head to his, and his lips captured her's in an intimate kiss. Penny wrapped her arms around Hiro's head and deepened the kiss, neither one wanting it to end.

* * *

 **Several Years Later…**

Hiro and Penny were sitting on a bench in the park together. Hiro, now 25, was a rising inventor and CEO of the growing Hamada Corp. He managed to secure a patent for Baymax and mass-produce him for hospitals and health care centers all over the world, fulfilling Tadashi's dream.

Penny had fulfilled her own dream of becoming a famous actress. Now 24, Penny was regarded around the world as a one-in-a-billion talent. Penny had acted in several films already, and each one did better than the previous film. The media absolutely adored Penny's talent in acting, and many fans regarded Penny as one of the youngest and most successful actresses in all of history.

Despite their busy schedules, Penny and Hiro always managed to cut time out to spend with each other. The young couple had been dating for about a year now, and they were tight with each other. On this particular day, Hiro had asked Penny out of the blue to come to the park with him. The two were sitting together with Hiro draping an arm around Penny's shoulders and Penny leaning against Hiro's chest. They were both happy to be in each other's presence.

Penny was glad to be with her beloved, but the sudden calling out to the park was a bit unusual. Penny and Hiro usually set up plans a few days in advance at least. 'I wonder what the occasion is.' Penny wondered to herself.

"Hiro." Penny suddenly said while sitting up straight. "Is there are particular reason why you called me here?"

Hiro chuckled. "Indeed there is." Hiro then stood up and pulled Penny up by the hand so she stood with him. Hiro now stood at 5 feet 11 inches, and Penny at 5 feet 7 inches. Hiro looked Penny closely in the eye. "Penny, we've been together for a long time now, and I want to further our relationship with each other."

Penny then noticed some movement in the bushes near the bench. Two figures suddenly popped up and revealed themselves. Penny gasped at who it was.

"Ms. Cassie? Mom?"

The two women nodded while smiling. "Not just us." Bolt, Mittens, Rhino, and Mochi were near the feet of the two women. They all looked very happy.

Eight more heads made themselves know one at a time. Penny was shocked at the small crowd of people that had emerged. Fred, Gogo, Wasabi, Honey Lemon, Alice, Meena, Jordan, and Will were all there. Will was actually not reading a book for once, and he looked incredibly fidgety because of it. All of the people greeted Penny warmly while smiling.

"Guys? You're all here?" Penny turned back to Hiro. "What's going on?"

"Hiro asked us to be here!" Aunt Cass replied with a smile.

"It's gonna get better, Penny." Honey Lemon added. "Just wait for it."

Hiro cleared his throat. "Penny, I have been with you for a long time now, and I think that it's high time that I did this." Hiro then got down on one knee and fished around in his pocket.

Penny gasped. 'Is he going to...'

Hiro finally pulled a small box out of his pocket and presented it to Penny on one hand and opened it up to reveal a small silver band encrusted with a single diamond.

"Penny Forrester, I love you with all of my heart and I wish for the both of us to be happy together." Hiro declared. "I want to be your partner in life now and for the rest of my days. So, will you make me the happiest man in the entire world? Will you marry me?"

Penny covered her mouth in shock and stayed very, very still. Tears started streaming out of her eyes as she finally said, "YES! Oh, Hiro, yes! I will!" She accepted the ring and placed it on her finger. Hiro stood back up, and Penny smothered him in a massive hug, which Hiro happily returned. The crowd around them started clapping their hands.

"My baby's all grown up." Mrs. Forrester sniffled while clutching Aunt Cass' arm. "She looks so happy."

"I'm proud of you, nephew!" Aunt Cass called out.

"Congrats, Penny!" Alice said while hugging her friend.

"Great job." Meena said while smiling.

"Nice catch, Penny!" Jordan laughed. "He's the perfect guy for you!"

"Yeah, great." Will muttered while trying to smile.

Bolt, Mittens, and Rhino went up to Penny, and she laughed while hugging them all. "Thank you, everyone."

"Way to go, little man!" Wasabi gave Hiro a noogie while laughing.

"Not bad." Gogo smirked while giving a small smile.

"Yeah! Nice job!" Fred congratulated while whooping.

"We're so proud of you, Hiro!" Honey Lemon smothered Hiro in a hug of her own.

"Heh, thanks." Hiro said sheepishly. "I didn't know I had it in me."

Penny and Hiro finished thanking their friends for coming, and soon, the only ones left were Hiro, Penny, Aunt Cass, Mrs. Forrester, and the pets.

"This way, I can better keep our promise." Hiro said while holding out his hand, which had a ring identical to Penny's on the ring finger.

Penny laughed while grabbing his hand. "Thank you so much, Hiro. You've been so good to me ever since we've met."

"And now," Hiro said while pulling Penny in for a hug. "We'll be together. Forever."

"Mmhm!" Penny agreed as she returned the hug. Aunt Cass and Mrs. Forrester stood nearby with happy faces.

* * *

 **Penny and Hiro are now engaged. And what comes after engagement? The next chapter will probably be the last one, so I'm just giving a heads-up. I hope that everyone liked the chapter (sorry if it seemed excessively sappy). If you liked the chapter, please consider leaving a comment. I will try to get the next chapter out soon, so sit tight! Until next time, peace!**


	10. Chapter 9: Forever

**A/N: Here we are! The last chapter in the story. I started writing this story about a month ago when a brilliant idea popped into my head, and here I am, writing the last chapter. I really hope that all of you have enjoyed the story thus far, because you are going to experience the finale very soon. As always, thanks for tuning in, and I present the last chapter in** _ **The Hero and the Lucky Penny**_ **. Enjoy!**

 **New Follows/Favorites:**

-none-

 **Thank you for your support!**

* * *

 **Chapter 9: Forever**

It was a busy day. Guests were walking into the chapel dressed in their finest clothes, and they picked up a wedding bulletin on their way into the sanctuary. Today was the day that Hiro and Penny would be married to each other. The wedding was made an invite-only event to avoid the premises from being overrun by reporters and the like.

Hiro, for one, was not having the greatest time. He was in a separate room where his groomsmen were making sure that he was ready for the main event.

"Come on, Hiro! Raise your arms a bit higher!" Fred said as he waved his hands in the air.

Hiro grumbled as he raised his arms.

"Stay just like that!" Jordan said while slipping Hiro's tuxedo jacket on. "There, it's just right!"

Will was unable to attend the wedding since he had something else planned for that day, so Hiro found a replacement groomsman.

"It's hot." Hiro complained. "And itchy." Hiro was fully dressed in a white tuxedo with a red bowtie. As Jordan said, it fit Hiro perfectly. A little TOO perfectly it seemed as Hiro's mobility was severely hindered by the outfit.

"Suck it up, man." Wasabi said as he combed Hiro's hair. He was using a small comb and a magnifying glass. "It's not everyday that you get married to the girl of your dreams. This early, too! Most of us are still looking."

"Yeah, bro!" Jordan chuckled as he readjusted Hiro's bowtie. "You're a lucky guy. You get to be married to one of the most famous actresses on the entire planet! I'm jealous!"

"Gee, thanks..." Hiro muttered as he stood up. Wasabi had just finished combing Hiro's hair. "I'd like to get out of this suit ASAP, though."

Fred laughed. "Now you know how Heathcliff feels everyday."

Hiro shivered. The thought of wearing something like this everyday was almost enough to make Hiro go insane. It was bad enough that Hiro had to wear a suit for a few hours.

"Yo, let's get a picture!" Jordan said while activating his phone camera. Fred and Wasabi flanked Hiro while Jordan stood a bit in front of the three to get a good angle.

"Ready? One, two, three!"

Hiro smiled awkwardly as the camera snapped a photo. After the photo was taken and Hiro was released, he sighed and was about to run his hand through his hair. Wasabi quickly grabbed his hand.

"Careful, man." Wasabi cautioned.

"Sorry." Hiro said. "Force of habit." Hiro then looked at the ceiling. 'I wonder if Penny's doing any better.'

* * *

Hiro didn't know that Penny was getting more attention than him, and not in a good way.

"Come on, sweetie! Open your eyes a little more!" Alice urged as she tried to trace Penny's eyes with mascara.

"Don't pucker your lips!" Honey Lemon said as she tried to put lipstick on Penny. "It'll smudge!"

"Stay still." Gogo commanded as she tried to comb Penny's hair. "This is hard enough as it is."

"Ah!" Meena was putting nail polish on Penny's nails. "P-please stay still Penny. I almost went off your nail."

Penny grumbled internally. As much as she wanted to voice her complaints, she couldn't. She didn't want to mess up her friends' efforts. All of a sudden, all of the girls backed away from Penny.

"There, you're all set!" Honey Lemon smiled while handing Penny a small mirror.

Penny looked into the mirror and gasped at the sight she saw. Her face gleamed from all the work done to it. She wasn't sure if the person in the mirror was actually her.

"Wow, thank you so much everyone!" Penny smiled after setting the mirror down.

"Hiro's gonna love it!" Honey Lemon said while hugging Penny. "I'm so happy for you guys!"

"Don't mess it up." Gogo said in her tough-but-caring tone.

"Thanks, Gogo. Honey." Penny giggled while turning to her other friends. "Thank you, too."

"Oh, Penny!" Alice gushed. "Don't worry about it. I'm always here for you!"

"M-me too." Meena said shyly.

Penny smiled as Alice's statement reminded her of another. _I'll always be with you_. Penny smiled to herself. Today was the day that she would be joining with Hiro for the rest of her life.

"Come one, everyone!" Honey Lemon took out her phone. "Let's get a picture together!" The group all huddled around Penny, and she smiled for the picture.

"Ready? One, two, snap!"

Penny laughed as her friends all whooped for her. Penny then stood up and looked out the window. 'Hiro, I'm ready for you. I hope you are too.'

* * *

The sanctuary was bustling with activity as the guests sat in the pews and conversed with each other as they waited for the main event to start.

"Are you ready?" someone asked Aunt Cass, who was in a basic orange dress.

"Ready as I'll ever be." Aunt Cass said in her usual happy-go-lucky tone.

The priest suddenly came up to the podium and signalled for attention. "We shall begin shortly, so I would like to ask that everyone please take their seats. Thank you."

The guests quickly shuffled around to get to their seats. Once everyone was seated, The priest nodded his head.

Hiro took a deep breath.

"Ready? " Fred asked while putting a hand on Hiro's shoulder. Fred had slicked his hair back and was wearing a black tuxedo.

"Let's do this." Hiro said before walking down the aisle with Fred close behind. Many heads turned and looked at them as they passed by. Hiro felt uncomfortable under the gazes of so many people, but he managed to endure it. Hiro took his spot next to the priest. Fred stood next to Hiro.

Then, Wasabi, Jordan, and, surprisingly, Bolt made their way down the aisle and stood behind Hiro. Bolt was wearing his own black tuxedo, and several people chuckled at the sight. Wasabi and Jordan were also wearing black tuxedos in contrast to Hiro's white.

Then, the bridesmaids made their way down the aisle, all holding a bouquet of flowers. Honey lemon was wearing a bright pink sleeveless dress and wore her hair in a bun. Gogo was wearing a bright yellow dress, and she looked disgruntled since she had to spit out her gum before entering the sanctuary. Alice was wearing a sky-blue dress with one shoulder strap. Meena was wearing a deep purple dress and tried to shrink down as much as possible to avoid being looked at.

Once everyone went to their positions, a ring boy and flower girl walked down the aisle next to each other. Hiro didn't know much about the two other than the fact that they were distant family. Hiro smiled as the boy held his pillow like a waiter and the girl tossed flowers in the air.

Suddenly, the old lady at the piano started playing the song that many had been waiting for. Hiro held his breath as the doors opened to reveal Penny with her mother.

"..." Hiro's mouth fell open slightly. Penny looked absolutely stunning in her dress. Even if there was a veil covering her face, Hiro could see Penny's features were well-defined by all the makeup that was applied. Everybody in the sanctuary stood up as Penny walked down the aisle holding a bouquet of flowers in her left hand and holding her mother's arm with her right. Once they made it to the front, everybody sat back down.

"Ahem." The priest cleared his throat. "Dearly beloved. We are gathered here today to celebrate the union of Penny Forrester and Hiro Hamada. Marriage is a sacred and binding contract- one that not only unites two people in body, but in spirit as well. It is not to be taken lightly, and should only be committed to after a good deal of thought and discussion between the couple. If there are any who oppose to this union, please speak now or forever hold your peace." The priest then looked around him, and no one spoke. "And now I ask: who gives this maiden to be wed to this man?"

Mrs. Forrester smiled at her daughter and then looked back at the priest. "I consent to give my daughter to this man." After that was said, she went and sat down next to Aunt Cass, who offered her a tissue.

The priest nodded and smiled. "Then we shall continue with the proceeds. We will now exchange vows. The groom shall start."

Hiro visibly stiffened, but Fred patted his shoulder and nodded while smiling. Hiro then remembered something that Tadashi would have told him in times such as this: _Breathe_.

"...Hoo" Hiro exhaled after taking a deep breath and looked at Penny in the eyes. "Penny, ever since we met in the cafe that day, I knew that you were someone special. Before I met you, I never had anyone besides my brother and Aunt to talk to. It was thanks to them and you that I was able to get to where I am today. We've been through a lot together. You helped me when I lost someone close to me, and I helped bring someone close to you back to you. We even almost died together. We came out of all those times closer to each other, and I know for a fact that I can trust my life with you. I hope that you can trust me the same way. I love you with all my heart and being, and I want nothing more than to make you happy for the rest of our lives."

Penny looked like she was trying her absolute hardest to keep tears back. After all, it certainly wouldn't do to break down in front of all these people. That and she had mascara on.

The priest nodded and turned to Penny. After she calmed down, she took a deep breath and said her own vow.

"Hiro, I've been so thankful that we met way back then. Like you, I didn't have anyone to spend time with besides mom and Bolt. I grew up alone for most of my life, but when I met you, I was so happy because I finally had another person that i could talk with and spend good times with. When I moved away to film in Florida, I just felt so empty without you. And when I lost Bolt, you were always there to help me feel better. You even found Bolt and brought him back to me." Penny looked over at where Bolt was sitting, and Bolt let out a happy bark. Everyone in the pews laughed at the event. Penny then continued when the laughter ceased. "Words cannot describe how grateful I am for you. I love you with all my heart, and I hope to stay by your side for the rest of our lives."

The priest chuckled to himself and turned to the couple. "May I please have the rings?" The priest was handed a pillow with two rings on it. He picked one up and handed it to Hiro. "Hiro, as you place the ring on Penny's finger, please repeat after me: 'You are the love of my life and you are my very best friend. I give you this ring to wear as a symbol of my abiding love, My eternal faith, and my undying devotion. It is an outward reminder of our inner unity. With this ring, I marry you and bind my life to yours. It is a symbol of my eternal love, my everlasting friendship, and the promise of all my tomorrows. I pledge to share with you my heart, my home, and all of my worldly goods.'"

Hiro repeated the words, and then he slipped the ring onto Penny's finger. The priest went through the same speech with Penny, and she slipped the other ring onto Hiro's finger.

"Do you, Hiro Hamada, take Penny Forrester as your legally-bound and lawfully-wedded wife?" The priest asked Hiro.

Hiro flashed a brilliant smile at Penny. "I do."

The priest smiled and turned to Penny. "Do you, Penny Forrester, take Hiro Hamada as your legally-bound and lawfully-wedded husband?"

Penny looked dangerously close to shedding tears. "Yes, I do!"

"Then, by the power vested in me by man and God," The priest announced. "I pronounce to you all, husband and wife. You may kiss the bride."

Hiro lifted Penny's veil and gazed into her eyes.

Penny giggled and leaned forward. Hiro leaned forward as well, and their lips met in a kiss. The entire sanctuary was filled with applause. Most of the bridesmaids were holding on to each other and cried with happiness. Wasabi, Jordan, Fred, and Bolt walked over to Hiro and Penny after they separated.

"Congratulations, man!" Fred clapped Hiro on the back.

"Way to go, little man!" Wasabi shook Hiro by his shoulders.

"Nice job." Jordan said while smiling. "You be sure to treat her well, aight? Cause if you don't..." Jordan flexed his bicep for Hiro to see.

"Got it." Hiro said nervously.

Jordan chuckled and patted Hiro on the back.

"We're so proud of you!" Honey Lemon tightly hugged Penny.

"Good job." Gogo said while giving a small smile.

"You did great!" Alice hugged Penny after Honey Lemon let go of her. "You're so lucky! Getting married to the man of your dreams!"

"C-congrats." Meena said.

Penny laughed. "Thank you everyone. All of you. You're the best friends ever."

Bolt then barked and Penny turned around. Bolt jumped into Penny's arms and nuzzled her chest.

"You too, Bolt." Penny said as she rubbed Bolt's back. "Thank you. You're my good boy."

"Hey!" A cameraman came up to the front. "Can we get a picture of all of you guys?"

"Sure!" Aunt Cass said while sauntering onto the stage with Mrs. Forrester following close behind. "Everybody come in close!"

With Hiro and Penny standing in the middle, the rest of the group surrounded the newly-wed couple. Hiro had his arm on Penny's shoulder, but then he had a thought go through his head. They were married now! Surely they could go a little further than this! Hiro then bent down and scooped Penny off of her feet. Penny yelped at the sudden action, but then she laughed and put her arms around Hiro's neck.

"Let's go, Hiro!" Fred laughed as he looked back at the camera.

"Everybody ready?" The cameraman asked as he readied the camera. "One, two, three!"

This time, it was Penny's turn to surprise Hiro. When the cameraman called 'one,' Penny curled up and kissed Hiro on the cheek just as the picture was taken. Hiro's surprised expression was caught on the camera for everyone to see.

Hiro laughed at his wife. "You little sneak!"

"You know you liked it!" Penny retorted playfully.

Hiro smiled as he pulled Penny in for another embrace. "Now we'll be together...forever."

"Sounds good to me." Penny replied.

Hiro and Penny weren't sure what was going to happen the next day, but come what may, they were going to face it together. Penny with her hero and Hiro with his lucky penny.

* * *

 **And that's the end! Thank you so much for reading my story! Sorry if the chapter was kind of short, but I think that it is a good way to end things out. A big thank you to all the people who followed and supported the story, a big shout-out to DAsKeTcHeRZ for making the cover art that inspired the story, and a big thumbs up to the Penniro shippers out there. This story was for you guys! I had a lot of fun writing this story, and I hope you all enjoyed it. Until we meet again, peace!**


End file.
